The choice of home or the unknown
by Sparklykraken
Summary: Jemma Whitewood starts her school year at Hogwarts. She meets a lot of people such as James Potter, Lily Evans and Severus Snape. Her curiosity causes her to break rules and almost causing her expulsion at Hogwarts. After completing most of her school years at Hogwarts, she finds that her family will be moving. Will she choose to stay or will she adventure into the unknown?
1. Chapter 1:

Disclaimer:I do not own Harry Potter or any of the Harry Potter characters!

Chapter 1: The letter

I was sitting in my room reading a book called Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them while waiting for my letter to arrive from Hogwarts. It was a very exciting moment for my family, and my parents and I already bought everything I needed for school. That is, the only things mum and dad could remember buying when they had to buy supplies in Diagon Alley. My eyes flew over the words of the book when I heard a polite knock on the door.

"Jemma, open up quickly! It's your letter!" Mum said politely but with excitement in her voice.

I rushed to my bedroom door and twisted the key to unlock it. Mum gave me a warm smile while walking to my bed. When she sat down on it, she patted on an open spot next to her. I walked slowly to the bed not daring to run. Mum was a very elegant lady and expected me to act like one as well. It felt like forever before I reached the bed and sat next to mum.

"Are you ready?" Mum whispered while looking at me with a warm smile.

"As ready as I'll ever be." I replied while she opened the letter.

This was to be a memorable moment for any young wizard or witch. I read through my letter with mum:

\--

Dear Jemma Amelia Whitewood

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

\--

Mum stood up and went to her office to send an owl to Hogwarts. I saw our owl, Teacup, fly past my window with her fluffy black feathers and continued to stare out of my window, excited for the years to come.

~•.•~

Dad got home the next day from Ireland. He had to go on a confidential trip for two weeks and looked tired. Mum gave him a kiss on his cheek like she always did when greeting him. I completely forgot all my manners as to being a lady and ran into the arms of my father.

After that we had a nice little breakfast with tea and scones and talked about the past two weeks that mum and I had spent at home. I was thankful in that moment that we lived in the family manor and not in a little house that I would easily find too small to spend in for two weeks.

Although my family was very well off, mum never wanted me to grow a big head about it. She always taught me to be kind and to care about others. Every month she donated money for different organisations.

Dad took me to Diagon Alley the next day and bought me a Nebelung cat with poofy grey fur and yellow eyes. I absolutely adored him and named him Toby. Dad was away very often so I learned to cherish every moment I had with him.

When we got home we were surprised to see the rest of my family celebrating my father coming home. This never happened,ever! I was happy to see uncle William. He was always the fun person in the family. Dad greeted his sister, aunty Emma and uncle William who was mum's brother.

My three younger cousins were playing outside. Mum insisted that I join them. I walked outside into the gardens and found my cousin Barnaby, Barny for short, smiling from ear to ear. His sister, Belle, was playing chess with my youngest cousin, Arnold.

Barny and Bell, who were nine years old, were the children of uncle William and his wife Pertonelle, while Arnie was aunty Emma's seven year old son. Aunty Emma's husband Edward died of dragon pox three years ago. It was heartbreaking for aunty Emma. She always whore black indicating that she was a widow.

The reason why Barny had a smile on his face, was because of the object in his hand. I rolled my eyes at the broomstick he was holding.

"Mum's going to murder me if I teach you." I said while folding my arms across my chest.

"Come on Jem, just this once! Belle promised she won't tell!" He said while pouting.

"What did you bribe her with this time?" I asked while taking the broom from his hand.

"Nothing, I promise. This time she bribed me!"

"Is that so? Well then, I'll teach you how to hover a little above the ground, nothing more. You know I don't like flying."

Barny squealed and hugged me tightly.

"What did she bribe you with anyway?" I asked, a little curious.

He came nearer to whisper.

"She stole mum's perfume so in order for me not to tell, she bribed me. You won't tell right?"

"Of course not! You're my cousin not my brother." I said while ruffling his hair.

After I showed Barny how to hover, we went inside for lunch. True to their bribe, the twins kept their mouths shut. Arnie never bothered to say anything being too distracted by a moth flying outside of the window.

The family left two hours later with their well wishes and dad went to take a nap, still being tired after the trip.

~•.•~


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Hogwarts

Time flew quickly and the time to go to school was near. Our house-elf, Mini, packed everything neatly for me. After she was done packing, I thanked her and she left.

The next day, mum and dad took me to platform nine and three quarters. I saw a tear slip down mum's cheek. This was obviously a special moment for her because she never cried. She knew how to control her emotions and almost always kept a straight face. The warm smiles she gave me earlier and the sneaky tear were very rare sights.

"Don't worry mum, I'll be fine." I said and gave her a hug.

"We'll miss you very much, sweetheart." Dad said.

After I hugged mum, I went over to dad and hugged him. His hug went on for a couple of seconds longer. I said my goodbyes and boarded the Hogwarts Express. I looked outside of the window of the door and waved to mum and dad while the train began to move.

I walked through the train and found a compartment with two others inside it which were a boy and a girl. It seemed as though the girl was crying but stopped soon after the boy said something that I couldn't hear. I decided to ask them if I could sit there.The girl's face soon lit up and she patted the seat next to her for me to sit down.

"I'm Lily Evans by the way. This here is Severus Snape." She said while holding her hand our for me to shake.

"I'm Jemma Whitewood." I said while shaking both of their hands.

The boy called Severus gazed out of the window after that. He seemed interested in the scenery outside. I opened my book again. Lily didn't seem to mind the silence.

A while later a women came past with a trolly.

"Anything of the trolly, dears?" She asked.

"Yes please." I said.

Severus frowned a little and gazed at the window again. I didn't bother him and bought various different candies and sweets. Lily also bought some and we decided to share all of it.

The silence broke after that. Lily liked to chat about her family and her life while I ate chocolate frogs and sugar quills. Eventually Severus joined in the conversation we were having about gobstones. I offered sweets for him and he thanked me while picking his favourites. I learned a lot about Lily then. I knew she had a sister and was a muggleborn. The same could not be said about Severus. He didn't talk much about his personal self. Most of what he talked about was how he met Lily. I got the feeling that he was avoiding his personal life, so I changed the subject.

"How about some Bertie Bott's Every Flavoured Beans?" I asked cheerfully.

"What's that?" Lily asked.

"Beans of every flavour. They really mean EVERY flavour. Here try one." I said while giving Lily one. Severus also took one.

I got a melon-flavoured bean. Lily got candle-wax and Severus got pepper. After having more beans, we got sick of it and ate some pumpkin pasties. I really enjoyed our little picnic.

~•.•~

After we woke up from our naps, we got dressed into our robes. The train came to a stop not long after that. All of the first years made it to the lake following a huge man. I read once about giants, but this man was much too small to be one.

"Excuse me." I said rather loudly.

"Yea'?" The giant man asked.

"Sorry to ask, but what are you?"

"Half gian'." He said.

"That's brilliant! I've never seen a half giant before! I'm Jemma by the way."

"The name's Hagrid. Nice te meet ye."

"You too."

We all climbed into wooden boats. Four could fit into one. Me, Lily and Severus climbed into a boat along with another girl with blonde hair whom I didn't know. Hagrid took one whole boat to himself.

We drifted over the lake. After a turn, a castle came into view. It had magnificent towers and it was beautifully lit with a yellowish glow. All of the first years gazed at the beautiful sight with awe.

We docked under the castle. After we climbed out of the boats, we gathered in a room. Voices could be heard from the other side of a large double door. Professor McGonagall introduced herself to us and walked us through the happenings of the evening. After that she left saying that she would return shortly.

While we were waiting in silence for a while, a scream could be heard from the back of the group. A glowing head popped through a wall along with a floating body. I realised it was a ghost. Most of the first years started screaming as well.

"I've read about ghosts before. Their mostly harmless but I read that there is a poltergeist in Hogwarts. We should look out for him." I told Lily.

The information calmed her horrified expression a little. She seemed to relax after a while. A couple of minutes later, Professor McGonagall showed up and managed to silence the first years.

We walked through the large doors in rows into the Great Hall. Immediately I looked up to the ceiling. In Hogwarts: A history, I read about the enchanted ceiling. Candles were floating. We came to a halt in front of a little stool. Professor McGonagall placed an old, dirty hat on top of the stool. It sprang to life and began to sing:

\--

Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find,

A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat,

And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head,

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you,

Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve and chivalry,

Set Gryffindors apart,

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffs are true,

And unafraid of toil,

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

If you've a ready mind,

Where those with wit and learning,

Will always find their kind,

Or perhaps in Slytherin,

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folk use any means,

To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

Your in safe hands(though I have none),

For I'm a thinking cap!

\--

Everyone cheered and applauded. After that, Professor McGonagall unrolled a long scroll. She began to read the names out loud and first years found their houses. Lily was the first of our little group of three to be sorted into her house.

"Gryffindor!" The hat said loudly.

Gryffindors cheered loudly as she took her seat. Then came Severus' turn. He got sorted into Slytherin. Then it was finally my turn.

"Whitewood, Jemma!" Professor McGonagall's voice echoed.

I took a deep breath and made my way to the little stool. I sat on top of it and the hat was placed on top of my head.

"Oh, look at what we have here. Very trustworthy and kind. Loyal to friends and family, but has a ready mind. Strives to learn and study. You would do great in Hufflepuff but not much patience..."

The hat paused for a couple of seconds and then finally screamed my house.

"Ravenclaw!" It said.

I hopped off of the stool and made my way to the Ravenclaw table. After everyone got sorted, the headmaster began his speech. He welcomed everyone back and talked about some school rules. He told everyone to keep away from the forbidden forest. He also warned us about Peeves the poltergeist.

The feast started and everybody dug into the delicious foods. Dessert was a big treat for everyone with a sweet tooth. Although it was delicious, some people filled up in the main course and couldn't even touch the dessert. I could only eat a couple tarts and was filled up quickly. Children from all houses began to leave the Great Hall. First years were to follow their prefects to our common rooms.

~•.•~


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Classes

We walked away from the Great Hall and made our way towards Ravenclaw common room. We stopped in front of a knocker with a little eagle statue on it. It gave us a riddle of which our prefect answered flawlessly.

The common room was very pretty and the ceiling showed glowing stars. There were a lot of study spots and a bookshelf at the back of a statue of Rowena Ravenclaw.

We all made our way to our dormitories being tired and worn out. I shared a dorm with other girls that I haven't met yet, but none of even bothered to introduce ourselves. We went straight to bed where our belongings were neatly in place.

I woke up early the next day and was the first to shower and dress. Only after I was dressed, one of the girls woke up and came out of a dormitory. We introduced ourselves and I learned that her name was Dandelion Grey. She was a second year, I learned, and knew her way around the castle.

We decided to go to the library together before classes. Dandelion wanted to find some books for extra studying while I only wanted to find a storybook.

The library had a lot of interesting books, so I ended up with five books. Dandelion also had a couple of handbooks with her. After we made our way back to the common room, we put away our books and I waited in the common room for Dandelion to return from her dorm.

When she did, she took my time table and scanned through it.

"You have Charms first. Professor Flitwick is very nice. He's also head of Ravenclaw. I'll take you to his class but you're on your own after that." She said.

"Thanks. I'll manage after that." I said.

We arrived ten minutes early and Dandelion went to her class. I waited outside of the class for about five minutes when Professor Flitwick unlocked his class with a charm.

"Woah! That was brilliant!" I exclaimed.

Professor Flitwick chuckled.

"Will we learn that this year?" I asked interested.

"Yes, but it will be quite a while before I teach you that one. For today we will go through the wingardium leviosa charm. We won't be performing it today though, only the basic movements. You're quite eager to learn aren't you? It is a pleasure to have you in Ravenclaw. What is your name?" He asked.

"Jemma Whitewood." I said.

We walked into the classroom and Professor Flitwick gestured for me to pick a seat. I sat at the chair nearest to the window where the sun was streaming in. The class filled quickly after that.

I realised that we had charms with Slytherin. Severus sat next to me and the class fell silent after Professor Flitwick cleared his throat.

Professor Flitwick explained the spell that we were learning. We read through the first couple of pages of our books and practiced our wand movements. Time flew quickly and I found myself lost in the hallways of Hogwarts.

Hagrid was walking past as I tried to look over some sixth or seventh years in front of me.

"Are ye lost?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm supposed to be at Herbology. I know your busy, but will you show me where to go?" I asked rather shyly.

"Yes o'course!" Hagrid said.

He guided me through the Hallways and we reached the greenhouses. He led me into one of them and walked straight to Professor Sprout. He whispered something to her and she gave him a weary look. Both of them left. For a couple of minutes, we waited until Professor Sprout came back.

The day flew quickly, but it was very confusing, after that. I got late for three classes already but luckily I had a double class that day. After the last class of the day, I went straight to my dormitory. It took a while to answer the riddle given to me to enter the common room, but I finally realised that the answer was actually simple.

"A broom." I said and the doorway opened for me.

We had very little homework that day. I quickly finished it and read one of my books after that.

About three weeks later, after I was reading a little my stomach gave a little growl and I realised that it was nearly time for dinner. I stood up and walked outside of the common room when I saw Lily walk past. She seemed a little lost so I walked straight up to her.

"Hi Lily! Are you lost?" I asked.

"A little. This place is huge!" She exclaimed.

"Yeah. I was going down to the Great Hall, want to come?"

"I was also going there but ended up here instead, so I guess we can go there now. That's if we don't get lost again." She said.

I looked around us and saw some other children walking in the same direction. They all seemed older.

"Well I guess we could always follow them." I said.

"Brilliant! No wonder you're in Ravenclaw!" Lily said while laughing.

We bumped into Severus on the way and Lily began talking to him continuously. I only heard part of the conversation about how her day was when something caught my attention.

"Hey guys, I'll catch up with you later." I said while taking off.

I followed a little white dot glowing in the hallway almost invisible to the naked eye. It led all the way outside to a small tree on the training grounds, that seemed to be moving, and then the little dot vanished into thin air. No one was there and nothing happened after that so I decided to go back inside.

The Great Hall was already packed when I arrived and I took a seat next to Dandelion who sat with her friends.She gave me a welcoming smile and waved.

"Hi, I see you have already begun eating." I started.

"Yeah, you're a little late you know. Where have you been anyway?" She asked.

"I got distracted." I said not wanting to elaborate.

"That happens a lot. Still does to me. Hogwarts never ceases to amaze. How was your first day anyway?" She asked cheerfully.

"I must admit it was confusing, yet exciting and strange at the same time." I said and told her about everything new that happened.

"Better watch out for Peeves though. Have you had an encounter with him yet?" She asked.

"Thankfully, no." I said.

The evening went on and eventually it was time for bed. I followed Dandelion to the common room and went to my dorm.

The next day we had Quidditch classes. Madam Hooch taught us the basics of picking up our brooms. It all came easily for me because my father taught me ages ago. I got ten points for Ravenclaw after I was the first to get my broom to fly to my hand. Some Hufflepuff got their broom up after me. Madam Hooch awarded them five points.We had lunch after that. I found Lily and Severus and sat with them.

"Hi Jemma! Where did you go yesterday?" Lily asked.

"I followed a strange little light. It led to this moving tree on the training grounds. Nobody was about, so I left. Any idea of what the strange little light is?" I asked.

"No but you should look it up in the library." She said.

After we had lunch, we went to the courtyard. I explained to Lily how gobstones worked and we played after that. Lily lost her liking to it after she got sprayed. Severus and I laughed after that.

"Sorry about that." I giggled.

"Ha-ha! Very funny. I'll have to clean up. See you guys later." Lily said and left.

Severus and I went to the library after that. I looked up the strange tree after I couldn't find anything about little glowing lights. I learned that it was called the Whomping Willow.

Severus found a book with a brown leather binding. It was an old looking book and the pages were all yellowed out.

"What are you reading?" I asked.

"The master's guide to potions." He said simply.

"Oh. Do you ever read storybooks?" I asked.

"Sometimes, I don't find them as interesting. I like reading handbooks, it teaches one much more." He said.

"Well which subjects are you interested in?" I asked.

"Well Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions and Herbology." He said.

"Well I'm more interested in Care of Magical Creatures. Herbology is also fun but I don't really know about Potions and D.A.D.A. yet." I said.

"Have you found out anything yet about that light?" He asked.

"No, but that tree I told you about is a Whomping Willow. Ever heard of it? It is a rare species." I asked.

"It rings a bell, but I can't really remember." He said.

"But why would someone plant a Whomping Willow on the Hogwarts training grounds? Well, we'll talk about it later, I need to go to Transfigurations." I said and we parted.

Transfigurations was very fun. I was amazed at how effortlessly Professor McGonagall could change a needle into a matchbox and a feather into a stick.We were told that we were first going to learn how to use Refarpaige then we were stacked with homework.

Before the day ended, I decided to explore the castle a little. I was outside gazing into the starry-sky. The moon glowed beautifully in the night sky. A ring glimmered around the almost round shape and reflected on the black lake. It was an amazing sight. I felt fully relaxed until I found that I was late for dinner.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The maze

I searched everywhere for the Great Hall but couldn't find it. The hallways twisted and turned from left to right. It became darker the deeper I went and I then realized that I was in the dungeons. Relief hit me in waves when I remembered that the Potions class was also in the dungeons. I began to run but soon found out that I was never in this part of the dungeons before. My stomach twisted as I realised that dinner was almost over and our curfew would end soon.

It felt like a maze where something was chasing you and if you got caught, bad things would happen. That's what would happen if I got caught by the caretaker. I started to panic. My heart was beating against my chest as fast as a seeker going after the golden snitch.

My head was screaming that I could do nothing but give up but my legs kept moving. I turned down a corridor and bumped into Professor Slughorn.

"What are you doing down here alone?" He asked a little shocked at the sight of a first year Ravenclaw in this part of the dungeons.

"I got lost professor." I squeaked.

"Oh first year, huh?"

"Yes professor." I said.

"Well, follow me. I'll take you back to Ravenclaw Tower." He said.

"Thank you professor." I said with relief that I was not in trouble.

While we walked Professor Slughorn began to talk again.

"It would be wise to stick with your friends while wandering through Hogwarts for the first couple of months. You wouldn't want to end up in detention if you're caught past curfew. Luckily you bumped into me and not that grumpy old caretaker. Now this is where I leave you." He said when we arrived in front of the Ravenclaw common room entrance.

I thanked him again and made my way into the common room. Some children were still sitting in the common room reading, studying and just talking to one another. I felt my stomach growl again and had to accept that I was going to bed hungry that night.

"I didn't see you at dinner Jemma." I heard a voice behind me.

I turned around and saw Dandelion holding up some pasties in a little plastic bag.

"These are for you. I thought you would be hungry so here." She said and handed me the bag.

"Thanks! I got lost again in the dungeons. Professor Slughorn found me and brought me here." I said while taking the bag and eating the pasties.

"Luckily Peeves didn't find you." She said.

"You keep going on about Peeves, did you have an encounter with him in your first year?" I asked interested.

"Nah, almost did though. I saw that he pranked Narcissa Black last year. It was really bad, she had to cut of some of her hair after that. It grew back naturally but it just encouraged me to avoid Peeves." She said.

"Isn't the Black family purebloods? The ones who despise muggleborns?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"Well better keep away from them then." I said.

"Why, you're pure blooded too aren't you?" She asked.

"Yeah but we are part of the 'blood traitor' group. Mum doesn't mind. She is a very kind person and stubborn when she makes her decisions." I explained.

"Well that's great. I'm a half-blood by the way." She said.

"Have you noticed the Whomping Willow on the training grounds?" I asked suddenly remembering the strange tree.

"Yeah, it wasn't there last year. Someone must have planted it there last year. Whomping Willows can be very scary when fully grown. I believe they grow quickly so better stay away from it." She said quickly.

"I'm going to go to bed if you don't mind, I've had a long day." I said while stifling a yawn.

"Okay goodnight." She said and I was off.

The Christmas holidays were nearing quickly and it was soon time to go home. Severus was staying at Hogwarts while Lily were to go home.

I felt bad after hearing about Severus staying alone, so I quickly found a quill and parchment and wrote a letter to mum. I didn't want to leave Severus alone but I wanted to be home when Dad would go of to America in the new year. Mum's letter arrived shortly after I sent mine confirming that she would do as I asked.

So that holiday I went home happy and excited to see my parents again. Mum took me to Diagon Alley and we went Christmas shopping. I bought nice little earings and a matching neckless for Lily. Barny got his own set of gobstones and exploding snap along with different kinds of sweets and candies. For Belle we bought some perfume sets and her favourite beauty products and for Arnie, we got a brand new coloured glass set of wizarding chess. Dandelion got some books that she wanted that her parents didn't want to buy for her.

Last but not least, Severus would get a letter that read:

Dear Severus

You're probably alone there at Hogwarts, so I decided to find a companion for you this elegantly black feathered owl is my present to you for Christmas.

I know you don't really like the holidays but it was important for me that you're not alone.

Your friend

Jemma

P.S. I'll write every day.

With that sent, I felt released of some pressure and could relax for the holiday. Mum and Dad spoilt me with some books, The Tales of Beetle The Bard being one of them. We also had a nice family dinner with my cousins. It was a very fun Christmas. As promised, I wrote everyday to my friends and got owled back by all of them.

It was a shame when it all ended but Hogwarts was an exciting place to go back to. I felt relieved when we got back to Hogwarts and excited to see my friends again.

I told everyone about my holiday and they told me about theirs. Severus didn't have much to talk about but showed off his new owl to Lily.

As if there was no holiday, school started with a lot of work and homework, especially in Transfigurations. Luckily I enjoyed the work we were doing. Potions was the hardest but I managed to do better than the rest. Herbology was my easiest subject and I had a feeling that it helped with Potions. Then I also had Severus to help when I struggled with something.

I got all my homework done Saturday and had an off Sunday. Most of the first years knew their way around the castle much better, including me. I decided to take a walk outside and found Severus near the black lake.

"Hi Jemma." He said quietly.

"Hi, care to join me? I'm just walking around the castle." I asked.

"Why not?" He said and we strolled about.

Lily caught up with us when we arrived at the clocktower courtyard. From there on, we went to the training grounds. It caught my eye again. I could see the little glowing figure much clearly. It looked like some sort of beetle or firefly. My curiosity took over and I followed it. Lily and Severus noticed it as well and followed after it.

We reached the Whomping Willow and saw that the beetle went inside it but before we could reach the tree, one of the thick branches slammed in front of us. We backed away quickly. Luckily the tree was not yet fully grown otherwise we would be pancakes by now.We quickly rushed back into the castle.

"Alright what type of tree was that?" Lily asked rather loudly.

"A Whomping Willow." Severus answered her.

"Yeah, we're still trying to figure out who would plant it there. My friend Dandelion said it wasn't there last year so it must've been planted resently." I said.

"Whoever planted that thing was crazy!" Lily said furiously.

"Whomping Willows are quite rare, whoever planted it must've spent a whole lot." Severus said.

"So it must've been someone who is very well off." I said.

"Look guys, maybe we should just leave it be. Whoever planted that thing, planted it for a reason. Maybe we should just avoid it." Lily said.

"I can't, I'm way too curious. You guys don't have to investigate though." I said.

Severus followed Lily's advice but I could see in his eyes that he was just as curious as I was. I decided to visit the Whomping Willow everyday to see if someone would water it.

Someone obviously saw our encounter with the Whomping Willow and it seemed as though the whole castle wanted to see how near they could go to it.

No one seemed to tend to the tree so I figured that they probably did it at night as to hide their identity from the rest of the school. For all I knew, Professor Dumbledore could have been the one who planted it. I then promised myself to find out even if I got in trouble for being out past curfew.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Snitched!

I managed to go outside almost every night when I didn't have much work to do. I waited each time for an hour past curfew on the training grounds. Luckily I didn't get caught.

I began to get awfully frustrated and lonely one night and I couldn't take it anymore. I had to tell someone. So I went to Dandelion and explained what I've been up to. I also asked if she would be able to join me.

"I don't know. If we get caught, we'll lose house points and get detention. We can't really afford that. Besides you're a Ravenclaw, what were you thinking on even breaking school rules in the first place?" Dandelion asked.

"Shhh! Not so loudly someone will hear! Besides, not all Ravenclaws follow every single rule! I need to find out what's going on! My curiosity can't take it any longer, I'm going to lose it!" I said.

"Curiosity killed the cat remember!" She said and sighed. "Fine I'll help, but only because I don't want my friend to go mad." She said.

I also heard her mutter something that suspiciously sounded like "...and I admire your curiosity, no wonder you're in Ravenclaw...", but I decided to let her think I didn't hear and just smiled brightly.

"Thanks!" I said quickly and went to class.

That night Dandelion and I went to the training grounds I expected to wait for nothing, so I gazed into the night sky. The stars were glittering around the moon which gave a yellow tinge as it was almost full.

As expected, nothing happened that night so we went back to our common room, carefully avoiding teachers and prefects doing their rounds.

We turned into a corridor and came face to face with the Hogwarts poltergeist.

"Oooohhhhhh! Look who's out of bed! Ravenclaws too!" Peeves said and flew off to find someone to tell.

That's when we ran. I got annoyed when the stupid statue gave a hard riddle. None of us could answer it. We heard footsteps coming closer and closer but couldn't see anyone yet. I turned back to the statue and pondered the question.

"Psst! Quickly under the cloak." A voice whispered from behind me.

I turned around but saw nobody.

"Who's there?" I whispered back.

Suddenly a boy with round glasses appeared out of thin air.

"Woah how did you do that?" I asked.

"With my invisibility cloak. Now get under it quickly!" He whispered hastily.

"Wicked!" Dandelion said.

"Shhh!" The boy whispered and threw the cloak over us.

Just then Peeves showed up with Professor McGonagall. The boy held both of our mouthes shut with each of his hands.

"I'm telling you I saw them! Two little Ravenclaws, they were!" Peeves exclaimed.

"I have no time for your little pranks Peeves! Don't let me call the Bloody Baron on you! Now, out of my sight." Professor McGonagall said.

After Peeves left Professor McGonagall waited five more minutes to confirm that nobody were out after curfew.We relaxed after that but stayed under the cloak for in case someone showed up.

"Where did you get this?" I asked whispering.

"It's been in my family for ages. I'm James Potter by the way." The boy said.

"Jemma Whitewood and this is Dandelion Huston. I've seen you before somewhere. You're in my Herbology class." I said.

"What are you girls doing out after curfew anyway? You're Ravenclaws! They never break school rules." James said with a smirk on his face.

"Well we were just..." Dandelion started but I cut her off.

"It's classified." I said quickly.

"Well I just saved you so you're gonna have to tell me." He said.

"I don't have to explain myself to you." I said.

"Well I could always tell on you." He said.

"The same could be said for you. Besides, they're more likely to listen to a Ravenclaw than a Gryffindor." Dandelion said.

"Yeah but if you tell them they would know you were out too." James argued.

"Shhh! You're going to give us away. Let's just say we're in your debt. Is that good enough for you? We could always help with homework or... something? What do you say?" I asked.

"Deal. The answer is Godric Gryffindor by the way." James said quickly and left causing the cloak reveal us.

We made our way into the common room and went to bed before anyone noticed.

The next few days, James gave me one of his annoying smirks every time I saw him. I regretted giving my name to him, but it was too late now. I would just glare back at him.

I got stuck with extra homework for three days after our nightly encounter.Dandelion and I still went out at night. I remember that I looked up into the sky and witnessed a fully rounded moon. That's when we saw four figures walking up to the Whomping Willow. One of the figures looked as if they were struggling to walk as he clawed his face.

They went near the base of the tree with a struggle but as soon as they reached it, the tree stopped moving. I motioned for Dandelion to go closer. I saw a glimpse of an opening in the tree but it closed up as soon as the four figures were inside.

I couldn't believe my eyes. Something really happened! Dandelion grabbed my arm and we silently made our way to the common room.

"Did you see that?" Dandelion asked.

"Yeah it was brilliant!" I said while smiling.

"No! I meant that boy clawing himself. I don't know much about them but I read somewhere about werewolves. I think he's one. It is a full moon after all." Dandelion said.

"That would explain the tree. The werewolf boy must be in first year! It makes sense, that explains why the tree popped up this year. I can't believe it, we're on to something!" I said a little over excited.

"If anything it only warns us to stay away from that tree. That's a very good reason why it was planted. I'm not risking my life to find out more. I may be in Ravenclaw but I'm not that curious about things. Strange things happen all the time at Hogwarts. Most kids just ignore it. I would advise you do the same. Now I'm going to bed, you should as well." She said and went to her dorm.

I did the same but that night, I was restless. Too much have happened for me to actually fall asleep.

I knew something was going to happen soon, something exciting and I couldn't wait to discover more.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Exciting things

I knew something exciting would happen,but I didn't at all expect that it would happen today.

It was a couple of weeks after the strange event that Dandelion and I witnessed. It was a couple of days before Easter. One of the boys named Davey Gudgeon tested the limits of the Whomping Willow and went too close. It was rumoured that he almost lost his eye.

That night at dinner, Professor Dumbledore informed all students that it was forbidden to go near the Whomping Willow. He also informed us that it would be moved away from the training grounds to a hilltop near the castle.

A lot of children moaned and argued about the new rule. Dandelion gave me a look that said "you better follow the rules this time or else..."

After dinner I went straight to my dorm. I had to think of another way to get to the Whomping Willow unseen, so I sat on my bed to think.

My thoughts were interrupted by a girl named Rosemarie, Rose for short.

"Jemma? May I borrow that?" She asked while pointing.

I looked in the direction she was pointing at and saw that she was gesturing to The Tales of Beetle The Bard.

"Yeah sure." I said shrugging.

"Are you alright? You seem to be in a different world." She said.

"Just lost in thought I guess." I answered simply.

"Sorry to interrupt then. You never really talk to us, how come? We are your dorm mates after all aren't we?" She asked looking concerned.

"I don't know, I just always seem busy." I said.

"Well you're always welcome to talk to us if you want but it's entirely up to you." She said.

"You know, you're actually right. Maybe we can have a little dorm party to get to know each other better? What do you think?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'll let the other girls know. When should this happen?" She asked.

"Maybe next Saturday when nobody has a lot of work to do." I said.

"Brilliant! See you later then." She said and went to the common room.

I quickly changed and went to bed knowing that another exciting thing would happen.

"Hey James!" I called.

"Yeah?" He asked with a little smirk forming on his face.

"I need to borrow your cloak again." I said.

"Are we planning to go outside after curfew again?" He asked.

"No I'm going alone, besides it's important. I'll do your homework again." I said rolling my eyes.

"You won't have to do it. I'm coming with you. This cloak never goes anywhere without me." He said.

"You'll have to promise not to tell anyone about where I'm going, and not to tell what I'm doing then." I said feeling suspicious of the troublemaker in front of me.

"Deal!" He said and held out his hand to shake.

I took it and told him to meet me at the entrance of the Ravenclaw common room. I wasn't sure if he would rat me out or show up at all, but it was a risk I was willing to take.

Night came quickly and I waited outside of the common room. It was about ten minutes already so I waited a little longer. It was about fifteen minutes later when I felt something or someone tickling my neck. The feeling gave me chills.

"Guess who's out of bed after curfew!" I heard the voice of Peeves saying.

My blood ran cold and I couldn't move. This was it! I was busted before I could even go through with everything!

The voice began to laugh hysterically.

"Gotcha! Relax it's just me." The voice of James could be heard.

"Why you little..." I started while trying to punch him.

"Na-ah!" James said and dodged my punches while still under the invisibility cloak.

"Come on now. Let's get on with it, I don't want to be out of bed longer than I need to be." I said hastily.

James let me under the cloak and I saw an opportunity and took it. My fist met his arm in a hard punch.

"Ow!" He whispered loudly.

"Who's there?" I heard my prefect say.

That's when we took off to the outside of the castle.

"Where are we going?" James asked when we were outside.

"Shhh." I replied.

"Well sorry..."

"Shhh!" I repeated.

"Why? Nobody's here." He whispered back.

"I'm trying to figure something out. Now shhh, I'm thinking." I said.

We walked further until the Whomping Willow came into view.

"What are you up to?" James asked again.

I couldn't take it anymore so the words just flew out of my mouth.

"I'm trying to find a way into the Whomping Willow's passage." I whispered and clamped my mouth shut with my hand when I realised what I just said.

"What? You've got to be joking!" James said.

"I'm not stupid! I just have to find a way to immobilise it. I've seen others do it before so there is a way to do it. Besides, strange things happen in there." I said.

"You're mad!" James said and pulled the cloak off of me.

I ignored him and went closer to the tree. Not so close that it could reach me, of course, but close enough to inspect it.

"You are mad, seriously!" James repeated.

"Well if you're so afraid, you can always go back to the castle." I said.

"I'm not scared!" He protested.

"Then help me figure this out! I saw the others go close to the base so there has to be a trigger there somewhere." I said.

"You can't! Whatever the tree is guarding must be dangerous. There's a reason they planted a Whomping Willow and not some other tree and believe me those aren't cheap!" James said quickly.

"Oh, so you know something about it, huh? It was only planted this year so it would have to be some first years or Professors who planted it. I think the latter is much more believable but why would a professor endanger students?" I said starting to interrogate him.

"Please, you don't know what you're doing just leave it be." James pleaded.

"Don't worry, I won't tell. I'm not a rat! I simply just want to solve this mystery. Dandelion said that she thinks one of the children who opened the passage was a werewolf. They are very interesting creatures you know, I've read about the after the encounter..."

"You don't know anything! Besides their not creatures, their people just like you and me! Their just stuck with a curse. It's not their fault their like that!" James said with anger.

"Alright, calm down!" I said quickly.

"No! Stay away from this tree! I will not allow you to find out what we're doing! Oh, and I'd be careful if I were you, if you tell anybody ,even a professor about this, you will wish you've never met me! Now go away!" James said.

"Alright, I'm sorry! I won't bother you again! Just don't tell anyone about what I've been doing, that's all I'm asking for!" I said.

"Deal. After this we won't speak of tonight or the other nights again. Now come on I'll take you back but don't expect my generosity after that!" James said.

I had no idea what he was talking about but turned away from the Whomping Willow anyway. Just as I was turning, the little beetle showed up again and shone it's little light on a knot on the base of the tree. I made a mental note to investigate more about it later. I then followed James, under the cloak, towards Ravenclaw tower.

James left immediately when we reached the entrance of the common room. Luckily the riddle was easy this time and I made my way to my dorm. The girls were all sleeping soundly, so I tip-toed to my bed and dressed quickly but silently. I managed to wiggle myself under the covers without waking anyone and fell asleep.

It was the last Saturday of the month and the girls were getting ready for our little dorm party. They asked some third years to buy sweets at hogsmead so we were all set for the get together.

It was a fun get-to-know-your-dorm-mate party and I learned much more about my dorm mates. Rosemarie was a muggleborn from London, Fionna was a halfblood from Ireland and Fawn was a pureblood like me but actually came from America who moved to England two years ago.

We asked her about the school there and what it was like to be in America. She cheerfully answered all our questions.

"Which house do you think you would've been in Ilvermorny?" Fionna asked.

"Maybe Thunderbird, but that's where most people think they're going until they actually go to school there. My mom is from England and insisted on me going to Hogwarts believing that it is the best school in the world. I'm not against her decisions on bringing me here, Hogwarts is amazing, but sometimes I miss my friends and family back home." Fawn said.

"Sorry to bring back sad memories. Maybe we should change the subject..." I began but Fawn cut me off.

"Don't be sorry. I still get to go home for the holidays, it just takes a little longer than it does for you guys. Mom would never keep me away from home. She might not be the nicest person but she cares for her family greatly." Fawn said quickly.

The day went by quickly so we packed up just after lunch and as most Ravenclaws do, we did our homework. I only got halfway through it when I couldn't take it any longer. I had to get out of the common room. I decided to take a walk around the castle. Absentmindedly I made my way to the owlry. I sat down outside of it on a rock when I remembered the knot on the base of the Whomping Willow.

Immediately I made my way to the library and researched glowing insects. I didn't find much so I decided to search for glowing animals instead. That's when I found it, the patronus charm. I read through the article about it and learned that the animal created by the charm could be used to send messages or just persuade people to follow it.

I also learned that no death-eater known ever tried to use the patronus charm before as it was pure light magic. Dementors could also be chased away by using this charm.

"But why would someone send their petronas for me to follow?" I caught myself thinking aloud.

"Who are you talking to?" A boy from Hufflepuff asked.

"Nobody." I said quickly and rushed outside of the library.

I rushed towards the office of my D.A.D.A teacher and asked about the patronus charm.

"We don't teach it here at Hogwarts as it is a very difficult charm. Only witches and wizards with great power were able to cast it.Why are you asking about it?" Professor Treebark asked.

"I read about it in the library and was curious about it. I read that dementors flee when they feel the force of a patronus and that the patronus can't feel any hurt or negative feelings so the dementor can't feed off of it, but what I want to know is why can't, for example, death eaters cast it properly? I'm sure that even death-eaters have happy enough memories to cast one..." I said but was cut off.

"Now, Miss Whitewood, one sentence at a time. I think that a person who is dark at heart don't normally have pure happiness or -love in their lives so a patronus would be impossible for them to cast it, but as you said, even death-eaters, though extremely rarely, can cast a patronus. It would just simply mean that the person didn't give in to full darkness, or they just found true happiness on an early age. Death eaters would avoid casting this charm to hide their light magic from the Dark Lord. Now I'm very busy at the moment and..." He said.

"Will you teach it to me?" I asked quickly.

"We'll talk about this later, Miss Whitewood." He said and left quickly before I could say anything else.

I made a mental note to ask about learning the charm later and went to the common room.

On my way there, I noticed that I left my book in the library. I turned around and started moving faster with each step. Eventually my legs started running through the corridors and hallways.

The entrance to the library came into view and just as I began to slow down, I bumped into something fell to the ground. When I looked up, nothing was there. Confusion hit me in waves while I stood up. I glanced around me to see if anyone was trying to keep me away from the library, but still nobody was to be seen. Slowly I made my way to the doors of the library and found my book on the table at the end of the room.

I made for the door again and was blasted against a wall. I twisted in midair and flew against the wall. I heard a sickening crack and felt pain soar through my left arm.

"Wh... who's there?" I asked shaking.

No answer.

"James, if that's you, I didn't tell anyone about anything, I promise!" I squeaked.

I heard footsteps coming closer and then more footsteps running further away. Professor McGonagall turned into the corridor and found me clutching my arm.

"What happened?" She asked alarmed.

Another wave of pain washed through my arm. Black dots formed in my eyes and I fell into darkness.

My eyes fluttered open and I found myself in the hospital wing.

Madam Pomfrey was tending to a student in another bed. My eyes blurred a little, but I could see that the student was a Gryffindor boy. The identity of the boy was still mystery but I had a sneaking suspicion that it could only be the owner of one owner of the invisibility cloak. My arm fired up again and I had a glimpse of a tall figure with long white hair enter the hospital wing before darkness overcame me again.

"She's waking up." A voice whispered.

"Yeah, how are you feeling?" Asked another.

"Careful, she still has some healing to go through." The voice of Madam Pomfrey said.

I opened my eyes but it was just as blurry as before. I squinted a little but it only helped a little. I could make out the face of Dandelion, Lily and Severus standing around me. A taller figure, who I assumed was Madam Pomfrey came standing next to me and started to feel my head for any warmth.

"How are you feeling, Miss Whitewood?" She asked.

"My eyes are a little blurry and...ow...my arm..." I began while reaching out to my arm with my right hand.

Madam Pomfrey poured a liquid into a cup and placed it onto my mouth for me to drink. It tasted horrible, but I swallowed it netherteless with immense difficulty. I couldn't help but pull a disgusted face. Madam Pomfrey didn't comment on my expression and turned to my three friends.

"You have fifteen minutes and then Miss Whitewood will be needing her rest." She said and her blurry figure left.

The potion she gave me began to work immediately and my vision began to become clearer.

"What happened?" Dandelion asked.

"Are you alright?" Lily asked.

"I'm fine, thanks. It all happened very quickly but it was strange. I was on my way to the library when an invisible force hit me..." I started.

I had a feeling that Madam Pomfrey was listening to the story, so I didn't mention anything about James having an invisibility cloak or about our little fight about the Whomping Willow but I knew that I had to tell someone so after I told my friends about the strange happenings, I asked Madam Pomfrey if I could talk to Professor Dumbledore. She insisted that I rest first and ushered my friends to leave the hospital wing.

After I slept, I felt a million times better but Madam Pomfrey told me not to use my arm to much so that it could heal properly. I nodded and went straight to Professor Dumbledore's office.

I said the password, that Madam Pomfrey gave me, clearly and a staircase spiralled upwards. I climbed onto the stairs while it went upwards and climbed three or four of them when it finally stopped in front of a door. I carefully knocked on the door and went inside after Professor Dumbledore told me to go inside.

"Can I help you with something, Miss Whitewood?" He asked while holding out a bowl of lemon drops. I took one and began to tell Professor Dumbledore my story.

"I was curious about the Whomping Willow and investigated more into it. I have a suspicion that we have a werewolf in the school, so naturally I got even more curious about it. I asked to use James' invisibility cloak but when we got near the Whomping Willow, he got secretive and all told me to stay away from it." I began to remember our fight when I remembered something.

"Professor," I began innocently. "I wasn't supposed to tell anyone about our encounter and the cloak. I don't usually like telling on people but this is too big a secret to keep. Please don't tell James I told you he would be very upset and..."

Professor Dumbledore held his hand up, to cut me off, with a little chuckle.

"My dear, I already know about the werewolf boy. I suggested that they plant the tree to keep all students, including our werewolf friend to stay safe. I also knew about that sneaky cloak that James uses to get around the school unnoticed." He said with a little wink.

"But Professor, why do you let him use it?" I asked.

"Every child has a little fun in their childhood years but I will not let him use the cloak for far worse things that just sneaking around the castle. I can assure you that I have a very close eye on him and his friends." He explained.

"Professor that reminds me, an invisible force attacked me in the corridor. It could only have been someone who is very powerful and able to change invisible or James who used the cloak. It has to be, nobody else was there with him so he must've been alone when he attacked. Worst of all, he didn't just attack once, he did it twice..." I said.

"Calm yourself, Miss Whitewood! James Potter did not attack you in that corridor." Professor Dumbledore cut in rendering me speechless again.

"Then who did?" I asked after a long moment.

"We believe you were attacked by our little werewolf. It was a very dangerous circumstance and of course, he would not remember it, but we found some torn up pieces in the cloak. Naturally the cloak is fixed now, but I would also advise you to keep away from the Whomping Willow from now on. The tree is off limits to students after all." The professor said.

"Yes professor. You won't give me detention?" I asked with confusion.

"Let this be our little secret Miss Whitewood but it will also serve as a warning for next time." He said.

"Thank you, professor!" I said and jumped out of my chair.

"Professor? I still have a question. What is the purpose of the Whomping Willow besides hiding the werewolf? What is it supposed to do exactly?" I asked.

"It serves as a passageway, but I strongly advise every student to keep away from it. Don't mention it to you're friends and if they ask, tell them to ask a professor about it." He said.

"Of course, professor. Thanks again and it will be much easier to keep everything a secret now that I let everything off my chest. Goodbye, professor!" I said and left his office.

While I walked through the corridors, I couldn't help but wonder where the passageway, that the Whomping Willow was guarding, led to. I knew that Professor Dumbledore wouldn't tell me more about it to try and keep me away from it, but the feeling of curiosity snuck up on me again.

There was no doubt about it. I had to find out where the passageway led to. Quickly, I ran to the Great Hall for lunch. I plopped myself next to Lily who was sitting at the Slytherin table with Severus and began stacking my plate with sandwiches and pasties.

"Hi Jemma." Severus said after I sat down.

"Hey guys. I found out who attacked me but Professor Dumbledore says it's kinda top secret so, sorry I can't tell." I said and began eating.

"As long as you're alright, Jemma. That's what matters most." Lily said.

"Yeah, I was going outside after lunch. Want to come?" I asked.

"Sure, why not." Lily said.

"Yeah, a little sun won't ever hurt my pale skin." Severus said sarcastically while rolling his eyes playfully.

"Oh, don't worry so much. We'll try to avoid the sun, besides the sun won't cook you up in just a couple of minutes!" I said while Lily laughed at us.

So after lunch we left the Great Hall. I took the lead and we made our way outside where I could see the Whomping Willow. We sat on the grass and while Lily and Severus were talking, I studied the part of the tree where I saw the boys enter the passageway. I assumed James would know all about it but I refrained asking him anything after our fight.

In fact he made sure I remembered our negotiations when I passed him to go to class the next day. While Lily and I were on our way to the Transfigurations classroom, he bumped me from behind.

"Better not tell or you'll regret it, Whitewood." He said and dashed forward.

"Jerk!" Lily yelled after him but either he didn't hear her or chose to ignore her.

After we made it into the Transfigurations classroom, I took a seat and was amazed that we were going to learn how to turn a toad into a napkin and back, but I didn't think that anyone would use it, though. It could do nicely for a prank but I had no time for such nonsense when there was a lot more interesting things happening at Hogwarts.

Naturally, James and his buddies were up to something already given their smirks and smiles, but Professor McGonagall gave the one of her stern looks and they decided against their plans.

The end of the school year came quicker than I expected so I decided to go on with my little investigation in September for the next school year.

I spent the last few days with Lily and Severus and some time with Dandelion before the year-end feast. Severus opened a little more up to me throughout those days. Our little group played gobstones more after persuading Lily to join and I begun to grow sad as the days flew by.

"Well, it's the last day of school. How are you guys feeling about it?" I asked.

"I'm excited to see my family again, but I will miss you. Luckily Severus lives near so we will still be able to see eachother. What about you, Jemma?" Lily asked.

"I can't wait. Dad will be home for a while longer than normal. Of course I'll still miss you guys, promise me to write every week. I can't wait to hear about you're vacations. You too Severus, even if it was dull, we'll always be there for you, you know? If there are any problems, write to me immediately and I'll notify my mum. She's a very kind lady, just don't anger her." I said.

"Thanks but I don't think that will be necessary, besides I'll just be ruining your vacation..." Severus began but I cut him off.

"Nonsense! At least promise to write then, every week remember." I said.

"Fine, I promise, besides Lily will never forget to write so she'll make me write too so don't worry so much." Severus said.

I smiled satisfied at my friends and we sat at our little spot near the black lake for the last time this school year. A tree shaded us from the sun and we enjoyed the warm weather. Soon it became darker, so we made our way to the Great Hall for the year-end feast. Severus sat with some Slytherins at their table and Lily sat with her Gryffindor friends. I was left sitting with Dandelion and her friends when Professor Dumbledore began his speech. He told us that another year flew by as quick as the golden snitch and that we would be returning again with renewed energy but for now, we had a feast to attend to. Food poofed onto the tables and everybody began to fill their plates with delicious potatoes, meat and everything that would fill our tummies. I left some space in my stomach for pudding and was definitely not in regret when the puddings and tarts popped onto the table. I filled my bowl with everything sweet and so did the others. Some (a bunch of Gryffindors) even tried to make a tower of pudding without messing the pudding all over them. They started to eat the tower after that but ended up all sticky and messy. Professor Slughorn laughed while Professor McGonagall gave them a stern look.

The feast went on till late that night and when we arrived at our common rooms, we immediately went to our dorms. My dorm mates and I found all of our belongings neatly packed up for the next day. We didn't sleep immediately after we got inside our room. Rosemarie, Fionna, Fawn and I played some exploding snap after Fionna suggested it. Soon we got tired and went to bed.

"Oh, Jemma I forgot. Another first year gave me this, said to give it to you." Rose said and handed me a crumpled up piece of paper.

"Thanks, Rose." I said and took the little note from her.

Meet me outside your common room. After everyone is asleep. R.

"Who could that be?" I wondered out loud.

"Dunno. Only one way to find out, but please don't get caught." Rose said.

I stood up and made my way outside of the common room. I was careful because it was after curfew. Rose and the others went to bed. I found a silhouette of a figure leaning against a wall.

"You're Jemma, right?" The figure asked.

"Yeah who are you?" I asked quickly.

"I can't tell. I just wanted to say sorry for what happened earlier. I didn't mean to..." He started.

"You're the werewolf boy!" I whispered to him.

"Shhh!" He said quickly.

"Sorry, but I have so many questions and..." I whispered again but stopped when I realised something.

"You're James' friend aren't you?" I asked a little darkly.

"How..." He began.

"He got all sensitive when I told him that I wanted to find out about why the Whomping Willow was planted. Said to stay away." I said.

"Did you stay away?" He asked.

"Yeah. You attacked me before I could do anything more and then I got distracted, besides I have better things to do now. Next year's work won't prepare itself." I lied.

"Typical Ravenclaw." The boy said. I imagined him rolling his eyes but i could still only see a silhouette.

"Anything against Ravenclaws?" I asked.

"No it's just I haven't met one Ravenclaw yet who didn't do their work and that stuff. All the other houses have odd one's out except Ravenclaw." He said.

"Maybe that's a good thing." I said.

"Yeah well, I came here to apologize,so sorry." He said and left.

'Do everybody believe everything that a Ravenclaw says. He didn't even question if I was lying, idiot. Maybe that's why people can't find an odd one out in our house. Well that just proves that people are all idiots.' I thought to myself and made my way to bed.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Vacation

The next day, everyone made their way to the train. We climbed into carriages that seemed to pull themselves. I made a mental note to read about it next year when we would go back to Hogwarts.

Lily, Severus and I sat in an empty compartment along with Rosemarie and Fionna. They didn't seem to mind the other girls sitting with us, so we began chatting. Lily seemed to love the two and talked endlessly while Severus didn't even squeak. He opened a book and lost himself in it while I stared out of the window. It was a rainy day and all the trees and plants outside had little droplets on them. The sky was full of clouds and it made the green of the plants and grass appear brighter.

"Jem, are you alright?" Lily asked suddenly.

My mind jumped back into reality and I inhaled sharply.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. I was just staring outside." I said.

"You don't look alright. Why is your face turning white?" Rose asked quickly.

"Oh no, look at her hair, it's turning orange." Fionna said alarmed.

"Jem, your ears are turning blue."

Severus looked up from his book and squinted at me.

"I think it's a prank. Those kids who call themselves 'the Marauders' pull them all the time. Don't worry, it's easily reversible." He said simply and raised his wand, reversing the spell.

"Thanks. The Marauders, who are they?" I asked.

"You know that jerk James who bumped into a couple of days ago? He's part of their group. They probably thought you wouldn't be able to reverse it." Lily said while rolling her eyes.

"I wasn't able to reverse it. If it wasn't for Severus, I would still be a pale pumpkin with blue ears." I said.

"You'll probably have to look up such reverse spells then." Rose said.

"Yeah I'll look it up at home. Mum can help me, she's very clever you know and I'll also think up a plan for revenge." I said.

"Revenge won't help, sweetheart. It will only get you into trouble, besides if you get your so called 'revenge', they'll only come back at you again." Fionna said.

"You're right. I'll simply have to confront them. I refuse to be their little make-up doll." I said and stood up to search for them.

"Jemma, wait. What if they have something bigger planned?" Lily asked.

"Well then we'll have to go with her." Rose answered and pulled out her wand.

"Who knew Ravenclaws could be so mischievous?" Lily asked.

"Try us." I said and gave an evil little grin.

"Well I'm not having any part of this." Fionna said while folding her arms.

"Shoot yourself." Rose said and both of us left, leaving the other three behind.

"You're gonna have to be ready so take your wand out." Rose said while raising her wand.

"Any jinxes in mind?" I asked.

"Stupify will do the trick but I have another spell in mind.

"Which one?"

"You'll see, but any spellcasting will only be as a last resort. We'll only threaten them then we'll leave. If they try to pull any tricks, you jinx them into oblivion, okay?"

"Alright, but what are we threatening them with?"

"I dunno. We could always say that we'll turn them into cockroaches. You're good at Transfigurations aren't you?"

"A little but I could never turn an eleven year old into a pillow."

"Their Gryffindors, they'll believe anything." Rose said.

"I hope you're right. Otherwise plan B will have to do." I said.

We glimpsed trough all the compartments until we found the Marauders. I gathered my composure and went into their compartment pointing my wand at James, all in one swift movement. Rose followed my lead and pointed her wand at one of the Marauders.

"Don't ever use me as you're little make-up doll again, or I'll turn you all into cockroaches!" I warned them while glaring.

"What are you talking about?" James asked innocently.

"Yeah, we didn't do anything!" His friend said while cowering behind the boy in front of him.

"Don't play tricks with us you little coward!" Rose spat at the boy hiding behind his friend.

"Please don't hurt us." The hiding boy replied while the rest of the Marauders rolled their eyes at him.

"I'm warning you only this once. Pull a prank on me again and I promise you will not get away with it." I said in my most authoritative voice.

I left with Rose behind me and went back to our compartment. After we sat down again, we exhaled.

"Well that went well. I didn't know you could be so scary Jemma." Rose said.

"Mum taught me. She's kind and all, but just don't mess with her. She's a million times worse." I laughed.

"Ouch, poor you. Growing up around her must have been tough." Rose said.

"Not really. I don't anger her much so she's mostly alright, a little like Professor McGonagall just she's my mum and not my teacher." I said.

"Slow down you two. We also want to know what happened." Lily said and Rose told them the whole story.

"You over exaggerating, Rose." I exclaimed.

"Nah, you should've seen her! She was scary and threatening all while looking cool."

"To be honest, I was actually freaking out. I couldn't believe what I was doing. Better not tell mum, she'll murder me!" I said.

"Well I still think you shouldn't have done it." Fionna said.

"Now this is a proper Ravenclaw." Lily said while laughing.

"Severus, what do you think about it?" Lily asked.

"I'm kinda on Fionna's side. What they did were completely insane and they did it all unprepared." He said.

"Actually we made a plan before we did anything." Rose said.

"Yeah you didn't think we'd do something without planning anything?" I said.

"Yes, but you planned it all in what, two minutes?" Lily asked.

"You guys are right. How could we be so stupid?" I asked.

"Yeah, next time we should think things through more. Although I don't think there will be a next time." Rose said.

"I certainly hope not." I said quickly.

The rest of the trip, we talked about our vacations and played some exploding snap. I began to like the game more and more every time I played it. The trolley came past and we bought some sweets. The train ride weren't much more exciting after that. I decided to take a nap after we ate everything.

"Come on sleepy heads. Wake up!" Lily said.

It seemed as if Rose and Fionna also fell asleep. The train began to slow down and came to a halt.

"I guess we'll have to say goodbye now." Fionna said.

After Fionna and Rose left, I turned to Lily and Severus.

"Remember to write." I said and said goodbye.

I found my mum in the crowd of people talking to another woman. She must have been one of her friends but I never found out after my mum saw me and greeted the lady. She turned to me after the lady left.

"Hello, sweetheart. Your father is at home sleeping. You know how his work is." She said and gave me a hug.

"Hello, mum. Yes, we will have to wake him though. I want to say hello to him too." I said.

Mum chuckled and we left the station and went home. Dad was already awake when we arrived. He was sitting in the living room with a warm cup of hot chocolate and The Daily Prophet.

"Dad!" I exclaimed and ran towards him.

"Hi pumpkin." He said and gave me a warm hug.

Mum smiled and called for our house elf.

"Minnie, bring Jemma a cup of hot chocolate and a glass of apple-juice for me. Then take her belongings to her room, please." She asked and the elf did as she was told.

When Minnie arrived with our drinks, I thanked her and sipped on the delicious chocolatey flavoured drink.

"How was your first year at Hogwarts like?" Mum asked.

"Crazy!" I said.

"Hogwarts never ceases to amaze!" Dad said.

I told them about the Whomping Willow that was placed on the training grounds and then moved to a nearby hill to keep the children (and maybe the tree too) safe. I also told them that I was attacked but didn't say anything about a werewolf keeping my promise and just claiming that I didn't remember what happened but that Madam Pomfrey and Professor Dumbledore were keeping a good eye on me and intended to solve the problem, but that I was happy to be home again. I didn't mention anything about my little private investigation, knowing that I would get in a lot of trouble if I said anything about sneaking around at night.

My parents congratulated me on making it into Ravenclaw-house. We ate dinner after that and I felt my eyes droop. Mum walked me to my room and tucked me into bed.

As promised, I wrote letters to Lily and Severus saying that I made it home safely and about the happenings of the week. Lily wrote about her week but Severus just said that he was alright and that he was reading books about the work we were going to do for our second year in Potions and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Those two subjects were his favourite, apparently.

Another week past and mum woke me up early one morning. Dad was to be going on another one of his trips again. Yeah, he stayed a week longer than usual but it was still sad to see him go again. We ate breakfast and mum smiled at Dad and then at me. Dad and I smiled back but I could see a tinge of a confused expression on his face. I also felt a little confused but I knew that mum always loved it when we were together.

Minnie took away the dirty dishes and gave us the mail of the week. One was for me, but I didn't know who would write to me now. It was only the beginning of the week and Lily and Severus already sent their letters of the week. Worry hit me suddenly. What if it was Severus who took my advice and wrote a letter to ask for help? Immediately I opened the letter and was relieved to find that it was not a letter from Severus, but a train ticket to Italy.

"We're going with Dad to Italy for the week." Mum said smiling.

"What? That's AMAZING! You're the best mum!" I said and hugged her.

"That is amazing." Dad said and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

After breakfast I went to my room to owl Lily and Severus about the news. Frotunately, they would still be able to owl me at the end of the week because we would only be gone for one week. Dad would be staying in Italy for about a month before returning home. Teacup took the letters and flew off after I gave her a treat. After the letters were sent, I called for Minnie to help me pack.

"Oh, that won't be necessary. She already packed everything, all we have to do now is go to the train station." Mum said.

She showed me our belongings that were twice as small than usual because she had shrunk it Reducio. She didn't make it too small or else the muggles would get suspicious.

Mum gave me and Dad our suitcases and we went to the train station. We boarded the train and went to our rooms. My room was next to mum and dad's. I knew it would take a while before we would arrive in Italy, so I settled in and read a book.

"We'll stay in Paris for a day before we actually go to Italy." Mum said while we were having a cup of tea.

"Really? This is going to be the most fun vacation ever! Where in Italy are we going?" I asked.

"We'll be staying at a vineyard called L'Etiquette in Turin. Turin is a very interesting place. The first king of Italy was born there and it is Italy's capital of chocolate. We'll also be visiting the Egyptian Museum and art museums." Mum said.

"Unfortunately I will only be able to visit all those places for the first two days in Italy after that it's back to work." Dad said.

"Why can't you just have a week off? You're always working." I said disappointed.

"That's how it works sweetheart. Besides after your second year at Hogwarts, I'll have the entire vacation off with you and your mother." Dad said.

"Really? We could do so much together, but it feels like a million years away." I said.

"Don't worry, one blink and it will be the end of the school year." Mum said.

"That's an over-exaggeration!" I said sadly.

"Then let's just focus on now. We'll all together right now and that's what matters most." Mum said.

We arrived in Paris the next day. It was a beautiful sight. We visited the Eiffel Tower and the Notre-Dame cathedral. The cathedral was huge and it had beautiful yellowed out bricks. Two towers was on top next to each other and from the sides of the building, plants grew next to it. It was magnificent from the outside, but the inside was just as beautiful. The ceiling was high up like at Hogwarts but where Hogwarts had an enchanted ceiling, the cathedral didn't. There were several chandeliers on the sides which lit the place in a golden glow. Chairs were on the left and right sides. Hundreds of tourists were around, most of which were muggles, but every one of them admiring the beautiful architecture.

After that we went to some cafés and explored. The day flew quickly and we sat on a bench near a river called the Seine. The water glittered in the light of the setting sun. It was like time had stopped as we stared at the setting sun, the water consuming it. Unfortunately time didn't stop and we had to leave. We made the train just in time and were back in our separate rooms. Nothing could be seen from the outside of the window because of the dark night, so I decided to go to bed.

The next day, we arrived in Turin, Italy. It was a busy place in the centre of the city, but we managed to make our way to the vineyard. There was a vacation home ready for us that Mum bought a while ago when she was planning our vacation. It had dark brown stone-like walls with a sun room that could be seen from the outside. Flowers from all different colours and species grew next to the building.

A small round tower was on the right side with large windows surrounding it. Large bookshelves were inside the tower with couches, serving as a library. It was much smaller than the library at Hogwarts but was much more comfortable and perfect for a small amount of people.

My room was smaller at the vacation home than at home but I had a feeling that I was not going to spent a lot of time in there. Mum unpacked my suitcase with a flick of her wand after using the engorgement charm on it to bring it back to it's originally large size.

Breakfast was held at a nice little restaurant next to the vineyard. Mum and Dad tasted various wines after that while I got some grape juice. We walked through the vineyard after that. The plants glowed green in the morning light and held round little grapes that were not ready to pick yet, but that were to be picked sooner or later in the week. A tall man with grey hair told us about the history of the vineyard and how they produced the most delicious wines, but my mind lost track of his stories as I slipped into my own imagination.

I wondered what it would be like if wizards owned the vineyard. Maybe they would use magical fertiliser to help the plants grow bigger, or use spells to enrich the flavour of the wine. Wizards could do much more here than muggles without much effort, but that's what made me admire muggles even more. If a wizard or witch had their wands snapped, they wouldn't be able to do much whereas muggles didn't need a wand to do anything. They did everything with their own two hands and built complex machines if they couldn't. How different would it be if I was a muggle?

I was pulled out of my thoughts when stopped for a nice little picnic with our group of tourists. We had some snacks and relaxed under the shade of a large tree. I spotted two kids about my age with their family. They were a boy and a girl that looked almost exactly the same and must have been twins. I watched as they played together with rocks and muggle toys. It was strange how different muggles were but still the same really. We did the same things but just had different ways of doing it. I realised that my mind got lost again and turned my attention back to the snacks in front of me.

After we visited the vineyard, we went to the Egyptian Museum and the art museums mum talked about. We found a small wizarding village next where dad would be working with other wizards and witches from all over the world. We visited various shops and bought a bunch of souvenirs from the different wizarding shops in the village. After that we visited a muggle chocolate shop and learned about the history of chocolate in Italy. Mum bought us various different chocolate types and flavours and we went back to our vacation home because the daylight had become lesser and lesser.

I made use of the library after we visited a bookstore in the wizarding village the next day. The once half full bookshelves were becoming fuller every time we made it back to the house. I didn't read anything yet because I wanted to spend as much time as I could with dad. We explored more that day and ate at some family restaurants. Mum had a travel guide with her and we went to as much places as we could before dad would have to work again.

We visited amazing old castles that were in the mountains that reminded me of Hogwarts. I wrote to my friends about our vacation but would only send my letters when I made it back home because we left teacup there.

After dad started working again I decided to read in our new little library. Mum and I still went places but it was not the same without dad with us, so we spent a lot of time at our vacation home. Mum painted the view of the vineyard outside while I had my nose in books.

At lunch I remembered my encounter with the Marauders on the Hogwarts Express. I gulped down the food in my mouth and began speaking.

"Mum, could you teach me some spells? You see, there's this group called the Marauders who play tricks and pranks on everyone and no one seems to have learned the counter curses on their little tricks. I got pranked on the Hogwarts Express, luckily Severus knew a counter curse, but I won't always have Severus to save the day." I said.

"Well I could teach you some counter curses and some spells to defend yourself, but I don't want you duelling and breaking school rules if you can help it. If anything bad happens go to a professor and owl me immediately." She said.

"Thanks mum." I said simply.

Mum taught me the disarming charm, the dancing feet spell and other spells that was safe for students to use and not kill anyone. She also taught me the shielding charm to protect myself in a duel. I hadn't practiced any of the charms yet because I wasn't allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts, so mum decided that I only study the charms. She suggested that we continue the 'classes' at home where I could study the spells in a more discreet environment with no muggles.

We took a direct train back home that took about a day while leaving dad behind. As soon as I saw Teacup, I sent of the letters that I wrote to my friends. I studied the spells at home for the next couple of weeks. I memorised everything about Expelliarmus, the disarming charm and Tarantellegra, the dancing feet spell. After my Hogwarts letter arrived, mum and I bought my new school books which included a book of spells. I decided to read through it out of curiosity of what we would be learning for the following year. I saw that we would've been learning the dancing feet spell, the disarming charm, the freezing charm and other spells that would come in handy with my investigation.

After that I decided to do some more research on Whomping Willows. I didn't find out how to get past it's branches though, so I studied various spells that could, in theory, help. I made it a priority to learn more about the freezing charm, but it wouldn't do to ask mum because I would be returning to Hogwarts the day after tomorrow, so I made a mental note to ask Professor Flitwick about it later and relaxed the next Thursday which was the day before going back to Hogwarts.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Immobilus

We arrived at Hogwarts and climbed into the carriages that pulled themselves. All of us took a seat at our tables and waited for the first years to arrive from the black lake.

The first years got sorted and the feast began. A hundred types of food appeared on the long tables and everybody began eating.

After the feast prefects took the first years to their common rooms while the rest of the school waited to hear the passwords of their common rooms.

Instead of a password to the Ravenclaw common room, we had to answer a riddle. This frustrated the higher years because the prefects wanted the first years to answer, so we had to wait. After about ten minutes, one of the fifth year boys got entirely irritated and answered the statue's riddle. Everyone streamed into the common room and went to their dormitories.

I found Toby, my cat, fast asleep on my bed. I got dressed into my nightdress and felt bad when I had to move him over for me to sleep. Instead of being angry though, Toby just fell asleep again next to me.

The following day, I was excited to start classes again. Potions with the Hufflepuffs were as funny as ever because of all the cauldrons blowing up and Professor Slughorn who was as kind always tried to comfort us if a potion went wrong.

Transfigurations was mesmerising to everyone even though a lot didn't excell in the subject. Everyone loved charms, Professor Flitwick was an amazing teacher even though he was shorter than most of us.

The first week of school started off with a lot of work and homework. I was relieved when I found out that we were learning the dancing feet spell first and was able to finish my essay on it without going through my book the whole time.

In Potions, we studied the uses of Swelling Solution and went through the instructions on making it. I memorised the key ingredients that were Bat spleens, Dried nettles and Pufferfish eyes and the other ingredients as well. All in all, school was in full swing.

Saturday, after lunch, I bumped into Professor Flitwick. Immediately I remembered the freezing charm and before he could walk away, I called him.

"Professor, wait! May I ask you something?" I began.

"Yes, what do you want to know, dear?" He replied.

"Could you teach me the freezing charm? I read about it and wondered if I would be able to perform it, because of it's complexity. I read that the fire making charm was much easier but we learnt that one last year." I explained and Professor Flitwick chuckled.

"You'll be learning the freezing charm later this year, Miss Whitewood. Why would you need it now?" He asked.

"I was just curious. I read that the freezing charm stops something or someone from moving but doesn't actually freeze them, so I was wondering if I could learn the charm to experiment with it. Maybe the charm could stop a certain poltergeist from disturbing students. In theory the spell won't hurt Peeves and it will wear off eventually so we wouldn't need the Bloody Baron all the time to get him to go away." I lied but actually became interested in my little white lie.

"Well that is the theory. I can understand why you're curious, but couldn't you just put that theory to the test later when everyone learns the charm? Besides, students aren't allowed to do magic in the corridors." He said.

"Oh, I forgot about that. Maybe you could put that theory to the test then, if you're not too busy that is." I said quickly, hoping that he would take the bait.

"I'm sorry miss Whitewood, but I am rather busy. Especially at the moment, it is the start of the school year after all. I'm sure you understand." He said with an apologetic look on his face.

"Of course I do, but if you are able to teach me, I could ask Professor Dumbledore for permission. I could help with something to make more time for you. Please professor the curiosity is killing me." I pleaded.

"Very well miss Whitewood, I'll teach you but you have to remember that curiosity killed the cat. I'll be on my way then, I'll owl you when you can help me then I'll teach you the charm. I must advise you to keep an open schedule where you can too. Goodbye then." He said and left.

"Whew. That could've gone in a different direction." I thought out loud and went to the tree near the black lake to relax.

Not surprisingly, I found Severus and Lily there. Severus was conjured a little flock of golden birds when I arrived. They sang a lovely song together and flew away.

"Hello guys." I greeted.

"Jemma! Come sit with us." Lily said and patted the ground next to her.

"Thanks. Those were lovely birds Severus. You'll have to teach me that spell one day." I said.

"It's simple really. I can show you tomorrow if you'd like." He said.

"Thanks, you'll have to join us Lily. It can be something us three can do together." I said.

Severus gave a little shy smile in Lily's direction but she didn't notice. A silent understanding went between us that I keep his little crush a secret.

The rest of the day, I spent with Lily and Severus doing homework in the library, writing letters to our family and catching up on our vacations. Toby, my cat, bumped into me when we were going outside to the courtyard. He followed after us and sat down next to me on a bench. It was strange because he was always sleeping in the common room or hunting mice in the corridors of Hogwarts.

"It's like he wants to tell me something." I said in disbelief.

"Maybe he just wants some company." Lily said.

I scratched behind his ear and he began to purr softly. We enjoyed the rest of the day in the courtyard but soon left for dinner.

The next day Severus, Lily and I found each other near Hagrids hut. All of us had our wands with us and held it firmly in our hands like Professor Flitwick taught us to do.

"Now, the incantation is avis." He said and performed it again causing a small flock of birds to appear again.

"Avis." Lily said and the same happened.

I did the same and thought of black little birds. They appeared and flew away with the others.

"That's brilliant!" I said.

"Yes, thanks Sev." Lily said.

Professor Flitwick owled me the next Friday to meet me in his class the following day. I had to help him sort out first-year essays on the levitation charm while he worked on some sixth year essays.

It took about an hour to sort everything out then I had to help feed the frogs for the frog choir. After that I sorted out the music sheets for the musicians. These three things together took about two and a half hours. That was just enough time for Professor Flitwick to teach me the freezing charm. I already studied most of the spell and the wand movements so all of the theoretical work was already done, all that was now to be done is practice the spell and I needed Professor Flitwick to show me the proper movements and positions to cast the spell and to pronounce the incantation correctly.

Professor Flitwick told me to wait for his owl to tell me when he would teach me the spell and I left afterwards. Professor Flitwick's letter arrived two weeks later at lunch. It said to find him in the courtyard three hours before dinner the next Saturday and so I did.

"So, the pronounciation of the freezing charm is Immobilus. You're stance should be like this before casting it." Professor Flitwick said while he demonstrated the stance.

After that he taught me the wand movements and I practiced the stance and wand movements with him. I also had to pronounce the charm several times. Finally, after about two hours of practice, he let me cast the charm on a rock that he transfigured into an insect. The insects scurried away but before it could go far, I used the freezing charm on it.

"Immobilus!" I cried and caused the insect to stop moving.

I squealed, happy that I got it right the first time. Normally it took a while, about three to five times, before a complex charm could be cast correctly. Professor Flitwick chuckled at my excitement.

"Well done miss Whitewood!" He exclaimed.

Dinner went by quickly and I got time to plan my investigation scheme. I decided to ask Professor Dumbledore for permission to test out my theory anyway because it got me interested.

The next day, I went to Professor Dumbledore's office and asked him about my theory. He simply chuckled and gave me permission.I made my way back to the common room and bumped into Dandelion.

"What are you up to?" She asked with her hands on her hips.

"Uh, nothing." I said quickly.

"I know that look on your face and you haven't even talked to me since forever, so I know your up to something." She said simply.

I almost told her about my further investigation on the Whomping Willow but quickly decided against it and used Peeves as an excuse like so many others did when late for class.

"I have a theory." I said and explained my plan to her.

I assured her that I had permission to use a spell on him this one time and she got a thinking expression on her face.

"I must say that this is completely mad, which is why I want to help. I don't want you getting hurt or anything." She said.

"What?" I asked confused.

"I'm helping whether you want me to or not." She said.

"Fine, but I only got permission to use the spell for me, not for you." I said quickly.

"That's alright, besides you're going to have to distract him. Peeves is very fast you know." She explained.

"Alright you distract him then while I try to immobilise him." I agreed.

"When are you planning to do all this?" She asked.

"Dunno, I didn't think I would actually get permission to use a freezing spell on a poltergeist." I admitted.

"Alright, tomorrow then at lunch. We'll have to eat quickly and remember not to hit one of the students when using the spell." She said.

"Can't we just lure him into an empty corridor or something?" I asked.

"This is Peeves we're talking about, besides it will take longer and we'll be late for class. I don't want to be one of the children who use him as an excuse." She said.

"What if he pranks us first?"

"I'll distract him, remember? If the spell works, we won't have anything to worry about." She said.

"And if it doesn't?" I asked.

"Well, I don't know really. Maybe we can threaten him with the Bloody Baron?"

"That won't work." I said.

"Run, then."

"I guess we don't have any other options?" I asked.

"Nope, that's why you need help."

"Alright then." I said and went to my dormitory.

The next day after Dandelion and I had lunch, we went to look for Peeves. We found him in a corridor picking on a first year and confronted him.

"Hey, Peeves!" Dandelion said.

"Looky what we have here!" He said rather loudly.

I sneaked behind him and aimed my wand at him while Dandelion distracted him. I readied my stance and repeated the pronounciation of the spell in my head. Peeves began looking bored at what Dandelion had to say. She looked at me for a second silently telling me to hurry up but that caused Peeves to look behind him.

"Immobilus!" I shouted but Peeves was too quick and I hit Dandelion instead.

"Tried to trick Peeves, eh?" Peeves said and went of to call the caretaker.

Someone neared us from the other side corridor. It was a boy that I recognized immediately as the one and only, James Potter and his friend that I found out was called Sirius Black when a Ravenclaw mentioned him at lunch last week.

"What are you doing?" James asked.

"Quickly help me get her to the hospital wing! I'll tell you everything there." I said.

"Why should we help you?" Sirius asked.

"I'll help you with homework!" I said in frustration while I started moving Dandelion.

"What do you say James? A whole month of homework for the little troublemaker?" Sirius said smirking.

"Yeah." James said and took his invisibility cloak out of his pocket and threw it over us.

Peeves arrived with the caretaker seconds after the cloak hid us and we covered our mouthes quickly.

"Are you tricking me again Peeves?" The caretaker asked annoyed.

"No! They were here! Peeves would never lie!" Peeves said but the caretaker left annoyed.

Peeves soon got distracted by a group of third years and left.

"Thanks guys. I owe you." I said when we carried Dandelion to the hospital wing.

"A whole month of homework for the three of us seeming that you also have homework. Ouch!" Sirius said.

"You should really think things through before you make a deal you know." James said.

"Not that I had much time to think it through." I groaned.

We arrived at the hospital wing and stood in an annoyed looking Madam Pomfrey.

"What happened?" She asked and stared at the boys anger showing clearly on her face.

"It was Peeves Madam Pomfrey!" James said quickly.

"You can't blame everything on Peeves mister Potter!" She exclaimed.

She turned to Dandelion and put her unmoving figure on one of the beds.

"I'll help you if you make my sentence of homework lesser. You know, if she finds out that the freezing spell was used on Dandelion, she'll probably give you detention." I whispered to the two boys.

"Fine, three weeks then." James said.

"Two." I argued.

"Fine deal." He said and I turned to Madam Pomfrey.

"Madam Pomfrey? It wasn't the boys who did that to her. It was me. I thought I could use the freezing charm on Peeves, but he was too quick. I hit Dandelion with the spell instead by accident." I explained.

"Such foolishness, miss Whitewood! You're not allowed doing things like this in the hallways!" She said.

"I have permission from Professor Dumbledore to put a theory to the test. Please the boys only helped me bring her here to the hospital wing." I said and showed her the letter he wrote.

"Very well, but if you do something like this again, you'll sit detention for a month! Now off you go to classes your already late as it is." She said after giving us letters saying that we were in the hospital wing.

"Shoot! We're at History of Magic! Professor Binns is going to kill us!" James said after we left the hospital wing.

"Yep, luckily for me, I'm at Potions. Professor Slughorn likes me so he'll understand." I said and left for the dungeons.

Homework for three was a big irritation for me for the next two weeks. I barely had any time for friends and had to stay up later at nights to finish my own homework. My little investigation plans had to be postponed until the weeks after my deal was done. Luckily I could make the timeline of the deal lesser, I would've gone mad if I had to do all that work for a whole month.

"Are you alright miss Whitewood? You look rather tired." Professor McGonagall said with a concerned expression.

"I'm fine." I said but my body wouldn't have any more torture and I gave a big yawn, covering my mouth with my hand.

"Stay after class miss Whitewood. I want a word." She said not being fooled.

"Yes, professor." I said not having any energy to continue.

Class ended a couple of minutes after and I went with Professor McGonagall to her office.

"Have you had any sleep for the last couple of days?" She asked with a face that told me that she would not be lied to.

"Honestly, not really." I admitted.

"Why, may I ask? You're not up to something again are you?" She asked sternly.

"Homework, professor." I said simply and gave another yawn.

"Homework in second year is never that much. You look like a sixth year already!" She exclaimed.

I decided it would be nice to close my eyes for a bit and rested my head on my arms that were on Professor McGonagall's desk.

"Tell me, what have you been up to for the last couple of days, and don't even think about lying to me miss..." She continued but I didn't hear the rest of her sentence and floated off to the land of dreams.

I woke up in the most obvious place of waking up after something like bad happened. Voices could be heard from the other side of the room.

"I gave her some dreamless sleep potion. She should wake up any moment now." I heard Madam Pomfrey say.

I decided to keep my eyes shut after that and faked sleeping. Professor McGonagall started to speak next.

"I fear she may have been bullied into doing some other student's homework, maybe more than one. It would explain why she looks like a sixth year at the end of exams." She said.

"I haven't been bullied into anything." I said and opened my eyes.

"Are you well rested, Miss Whitewood?" Madam Pomfrey asked .

"Yes, thank you Madam Pomfrey." I replied and she left to let Professor McGonagall speak to me alone.

"Explain then, Miss Whitewood, why haven't you been sleeping?" Professor McGonagall asked.

I found no harm in telling the truth but didn't mention anything about the invisibility cloak.

"I made a deal with them, had no choice. Honestly professor I'm fine." I said.

"Such foolishness! Five points from Ravenclaw. Now I will speak to those two trouble makers later." She said.

"Please, professor. It's not their fault I am so curious about everything. Sometimes it feels like a curse having so much curiosity." I said meaning every word.

"You have a big heart Miss Whitewood but you must understand that helping you isn't the only thing I want to talk to you about. You know sometimes I think you would do wonderfully in Hufflepuff if Ravenclaw hadn't existed." She said.

"But professor, they only helped..." I began but she interrupted.

"Yet they bribed you afterwards. Now you are dismissed of classes tomorrow. I expect you use that time to rest and only do your own homework and Miss Whitewood, never show up to my class looking like that unless you're at least in fifth year again. If I find out your doing those two's homework again, I will be sure of giving you extra homework in the holidays." She said quickly.

"Alright, I don't think I want to make any so called 'deals' with them ever again. I feel relieved that I to only had to do their homework for two weeks and not a whole month." I said rolling my eyes slightly.

"What? Those two will have an even longer word with me then. Now rest, Miss Whitewood." She said and left quickly.

The next day gave me plenty of time to finish up my own homework and think of my next step in trying to enter the passageway that the Whomping Willow was guarding.

I made my way outside to the tree near the black lake to relax. With everyone in class, outside was very silent. The only things that could be heard was the sound of the little waves on the lake and birds singing in the distance. I relaxed in and took a quick nap under the tree.

I woke up a couple of minutes before lunch and walked to the Great Hall. While I walked I planned the next step to get inside the passageway and decided to put my plan in action while everyone was at dinner, so I ate more at lunch to fill my stomach. I didn't want to get into trouble again so I decided to put my plan into action before curfew.

After everyone was inside for dinner, I made my way to the Whomping Willow. I got into position.

"Immobilus." I said clearly.

I couldn't believe my eyes when it worked. The Whomping Willow stopped moving and I made my way to the passageway that revealed itself. I walked straight to the passageway and entered a room and heard movement on the other side of the passageway that indicated that the freezing spell on the Whomping Willow had worn off. The wooden floorboards creaked with every step that I took, so naturally I took slow, careful steps.

"Wow. This must definitely be a wizarding place." I said while exploring. The room was very dusty and disordered. Stains could be seen on the floor and the paper on the walls was peeling off. The whole room looked old and was completely ruined. The furniture was just as dusty as the room itself as if it weren't being used but the ruined state of the room itself showed signs that it was the doing of someone or something.

"This must be the doing of the werewolf boy." I said thinking out loud.

The whole place amazed me completely. I looked outside of one of the windows and saw a village outside. One of the people outside was dressed in robes and had a pointed hat on. I recognized the place immediately. This was Hogsmede! Hogsmede was the only fully wizarding village in Britain. I realised that I was in the Shrieking Shack. Rumors went around that this place was haunted but I never thought that the reason for these rumors was the werewolf boy's fault.

I was only in Hogsmede once last year when mum visited her friend in one of the shops, but was immediately told not to go near the 'haunted Shrieking Shack'. I didn't thinks much about the place because I quickly got distracted by the various things inside of the contents in the shop we were visiting. Various herbs could be seen everywhere giving off different scents. I immediately read a book of herbs when I got home, the Shrieking Shack completely forgotten.

A couple of young boys, too young to be at Hogwarts, were looking right in my direction. My eyes widened and I immediately went back through the passageway and back to Hogwarts. Quickly I made my way back to the common room relieved that I was just in time before the curfew ended. Everyone made their way back to the common room and I found Dandelion, back to complete health, walking with one of her friends. I hurried over to her and walked along side her.

"Hi!" I said happily.

"What were you up to?" Dandelion asked sternly.

"Nothing." I answered quickly.

Dandelion's friend left for the Hufflepuff common room while Dandelion continued.

"Don't lie to me! You weren't at dinner and that curious expression that you always have on your face is gone. You did something. I know you better than you think you know, besides you can't hide anything from friends. That's why they are your friends isn't it?" She said.

"Yeah, but I didn't do anything dangerous." I said.

"You're lying." Dandelion said simply when we arrived at the door to the common room.

Dandelion answered the riddle and we went inside. Dandelion took me to a table in the corner of the common room where nobody sat at so nobody would bother listening to our conversation.

"I can't tell the truth, you know. Professor Dumbledore told me not to, besides he's not the only one that I promised not to tell anything to anyone." I said.

"Is it that boy? James Potter? Is that why he keeps on letting you do his homework?" She asked.

"How..." I began.

"I heard Professor McGonagall talking about it in the corridor leading to the hospital wing." She said.

"Yeah well, we had a deal. I was to use something he has to get you to the hospital wing without getting in trouble." I said.

"I was immobilised not blind! I saw the cloak." She said.

"What? You can't tell anybody about it. That's one of the things I have to keep secret." I said alarmed.

"So you admit that there more your not telling me?" Dandelion asked.

"I'm going to bed before you fish something else out of me. Goodnight." I said and left to my dorm.

I found the girls in the common room in a panic. The dormitory looked as if a tornado danced the tango trough it and left. The bed covers and pillows were littered on the floor along with various books and other belongings. Toby, Fawn's owl and Rose's cat were also in alarm near the door of the dorm.

"What's going on here? What happened?" I asked the girls.

"It's my owl. I can't believe it! She just went into a full panic and ransacked everything! She's in the cupboard in there." Fionna said and pointed to the cupboard next to her bed.

I closed the door and took a deep breath.

"Alright, let her out." I said.

"Are you mad?" Rose asked.

"Yeah that thing has gone mental!" Fawn said.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing." I said and Fionna hesitantly opened the cupboard.

The snowy owl flew out with an immense speed and sat in one of the corners of the room.

"Immobilus!" I said and she froze.

"What did you do to her?" Fionna yelped in alarm.

"Calm down! I just froze her, it's not as if I killed her. We'll have to take her to Madam Pomfrey, she'll know what to do." I said.

"But it's almost curfew!" Fawn said quickly.

"Then we'll have to hurry, you could always stay here you know, but Fionna will have to come with me." I said to her.

"I'm going with them. Are you?" Rose asked Fawn.

"Fine, but we'll have to be quick." She said.

We made our way to the hospital wing with Fionna's owl as quickly as possible and found Madam Pomfrey doing her last work for the day.

"What on Earth!" She said when we threw open the door.

"Madam Pomfrey! We need help." Rose said and we explained what had happened to her.

"I don't specialise with animals but I'll see what I can do. You girls go to bed now, you can come back tomorrow." She said and began working on the owl right away.

We went back to our dormitory and cleaned up using our wands. After that, we dressed and went to bed.

The next day we went straight to the hospital wing before breakfast. There were a couple of students with different kinds of wounds, that they probably had for their own reasons, and sicknesses. Surprisingly, we found Professor McGonagall talking to Madam Pomfrey at the end of the room. They were speaking in hushed voices and glancing at a girl with short, pixie-like, blonde hair. When we approached, they had grim expressions on their faces.

"Miss Fionna, I am sorry to inform that you will not be getting your owl back any time soon. You see, your owl has changed into this girl and as the Transfigurations teacher, I'll be taking matters into my own hands in figuring out what has happened to her." Professor McGonagall said.

"What? All this time and my owl was a girl?" Fionna said shocked.

"Don't worry, we'll get you a new one." I said patting her on the back.

"Come on girls, we can talk about this later. Breakfast is waiting." Rose said quickly, trying to change the subject.

"I think that would be wise. You need your energy for the day." Madam Pomfrey said.

Fionna was shocked through the whole day. Her attention was in a different universe altogether, probably thinking about her pet, that she had for three years, turning into a human and being told that her pet would not be returned.Rose tried everything to comfort her but failed.

After Potions we would have Transfigurations. We would probably get some answers after class. Fionna seemed as if she couldn't wait for the class and literally ran to it after Potions leaving us behind.

When we arrived at the Transfigurations classroom, Professor McGonagall told the class that they were dismissed. She ushered us into her office and transfigured some quills into chairs for us to sit.

"Now I assume you girls want to know precisely what is going on, so I will get to the point. We believe that the girl may be an animagus but that is only a theory. I can't explain why she would want to remain in her bird form for so long but we will have to find out once she has woken up from the dreamless sleep potion that Madam Pomfrey gave her. Now as you know, I myself am an animagus as you've seen in class when I changed into a cat. Now I'm sure you have many questions?" Professor McGonagall began.

"Will we be able to meet her? She was my owl after all." Fionna said, speaking for the first time after she heard about the news.

"That will be for the headmaster to decide, my dear." Professor McGonagall answered.

"Could we speak to him now?" Rose asked.

"I'm afraid he's quite busy at the moment as you can imagine, but I'll be happy to answer any further questions that you have right now." She said.

"Professor, what if the girl was forced to remain in her owl form? That would explain why she was an owl for three years." Fawn said.

"But why would she turn back right now, of all the moments, besides couldn't she just have changed back when Fionna bought her? Fionna would never force her like that." I said.

"We'll find out once she wakes up." Professor McGonagall said.

"We'll have to wait then." I said.

"I will inform you of further information later, but for now, I have other things to attend to as you can understand." Professor McGonagall said and we left her office.

"What do we do now?" Fionna asked.

"Wait, I guess." Rose answered.

"I don't know about you, but I'm going to the library." I said and left the girls in a hallway.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Trouble

I made my way to the library as quickly as my legs would let me and scanned through the bookshelves. I came across a book about an animagus and how to become one and took it with me to the common room along with a book about curses with a picture of a werewolf on the first page.

Every chapter in the second book had a picture of a victim of the curse that was being described in the chapter. The chapter about werewolves was slightly longer than the rest of the chapters and quite fascinating. I began to understand what the werewolf boy was going through but soon went to the animagus book.

I read every page carefully and learned a lot about how to become an animagus but that didn't help much on the problem the girls and I had so I decided to read more the next day. Professor McGonagall's owl didn't show up in a long while which gave me more time to read the two books I borrowed from the library but not as much as I thought I would get. We had a whole week load of homework for the next couple of days and we still had no idea what was going on with Fionna's owl. She was still asleep in the hospital wing while Madam Pomfrey cared for her.

After classes was done the next Friday, I went straight back to the book I was reading. I had finished the animagus book and had the curse book in my hands. I finally came to the last chapter and read through it.

'A Maledictus is someone who is a carrier of a blood curse that is destined to transform them permanently into a beast. At first they can seem to be an animagus but that is not the case...'

It went on and on about the history of why a Maledictus is what they are as I read the pages. Everything pieced itself together like a puzzle in my head. Immediately I ran to the Great Hall where everyone would be getting ready for dinner. I waited a couple of minutes before the girls showed up and I ushered them to sit next to me.

"I think I know what's going on." I began.

"Really?" Rose asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I think the girl is a Maledictus. It explains why she struggled to change back into human form." I continued.

"What's a Maledictus?" Fionna asked.

I opened the book and read the chapter to them. Their eyes grew wide while I read aloud and understanding began to fill them.

After we ate, we went straight to the hospital wing. Naturally we found Madam Pomfrey there tending to students along with the girl. The strange thing was that she was wide awake talking to Professor McGonagall.

All three of them stared at us as we burst into the hospital wing in full speed, although Fionna stayed behind us hiding. Understanding filled Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey immediately but the girl seemed confused.

"So you know?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Jemma found out really, she only told us after she found out reading a book in the library." Fawn said quickly.

"Is it true? Are you really a Maledictus?" I asked amazed.

Shock immediately filled the girl's eyes and she looked into Professor McGonagall's eyes in panic. Fionna came into full view of the girl and the girl calmed down a little.

"I'm sorry that you had to go through all that. It must've been terrible being captured and sold to someone. What's your name?" Fionna began.

"I'm sure you girls have a lot of questions but you should give her some space. I'll answer any further questions when she feels better." Professor McGonagall said and Madam Pomfrey immediately ushered us out of the hospital wing.

School went on normally for the next couple of days but we all had a feeling of guilt and curiosity inside of us. I maybe had more curiosity than guilt but we were all fixed on what we could do to help the girl.

We were in potions class when Professor Dumbledore came inside of the classroom. He whispered something to Professor Slughorn and they disappeared into his office. It took a while before they came out but when they did, Professor Dumbledore gave us a little wink. The Hufflepuffs weren't paying any attention to him while they were crushing some ingredients and I had a feeling that he was trying to tell us something.

After class, the girls came together outside of the class. Apparently the girls also had a little puzzle that they pieced together when Professor Dumbledore winked at us and we went straight to Professor McGonagall's office and knocked on the door. After Professor McGonagall let us enter, she transfigured some decorative sticks into chairs for all of us to sit on.

Everyone was silent waiting for Professor McGonagall to speak. She simply raised an eyebrow at us as if she was the one waiting for us to speak, so I decided to start.

"Professor, we were in potions and Professor Dumbledore suddenly walked inside. He told something to Professor Slughorn and they went to Professor Slughorn's office. I think it was just to distract everyone though. Anyway, when he came out, he winked at us so we assumed that you wanted to see us."

"Whatever for, Miss Whitewood?" She asked peering under her glasses.

"About the girl, Professor." Fawn said suddenly.

"I will inform you when the time is right. Now, off you go." She said and we obeyed immediately.

We walked a couple of minutes before anyone dared to say something.

"Why would Professor Dumbledore give us a wink if it isn't even a clue? I think he's gone mad!" Rose said.

"No, he has gone mad. Everyone knows that." Fionna said.

"I dunno, I still think it's a clue to something. Maybe we should go to the girl when neither Professor McGonagall nor Madam Pomfrey is there." I thought out loud.

"After hours then. You know we're not allowed." Fawn said quickly.

"Oh come on. We're Ravenclaws! I'm sure we're smart enough not to get caught! Besides, if the stupid kids from Gryffindor can do it, we can too!" Rose exclaimed.

"Well, not all Gryffindors are stupid you know." Fionna said blushing slightly.

"Just because you have a little crush on one, doesn't mean that he's not stupid you know." Rose said.

"Fionna has a point you know. Nobody expects Ravenclaws breaking school rules so we can't really say that all Gryffindors are stupid." I said as a matter of fact.

"Yeah, but that's just it! No Ravenclaw breaks a school rule! You can't do this!" Fawn exclaimed in a whisper.

"Exactly! No one expects it, so nobody will even look twice at us. Besides we'll have to blend in to hide. I'm gonna need something from a certain Potter but we're not really on good terms with eachother, so Fionna will have to ask for a certain cloak that I need."

"No I will not!" Fionna said quickly causing her already pink cheeks to redden.

"Well I'm not taking any part in this little scheme of yours so I'm going to the common room and please don't need me." Fawn said and left.

"Come on Fionna we need you! Don't let a stupid crush get in your way." Rose said.

"Why can't you do it?" She asked.

"Uh, there was a certain incident on the train that you know all about, besides he already knows that I'm friends with Jemma. He won't help me, but you on the other hand..." Rose said in a persuasive voice.

"Look. Either you ask or I'm going to have to sneak into the Gryffindor Common room and get it myself. I refuse to make another stupid deal with him!" I said.

"Fine, but if I mess up, I won't help any further. You're just going to have to find things out without me and report back to the dormitory. What do I have to say?" Fionna asked.

"Just tell him that you heard from a Hufflepuff that he had a cloak that will help you blend in. Then ask him that you need it to help your Gryffindor friend to pull a prank on the Slytherin Quidditch team. If he asks about the prank, just tell him that your friend wants to hide their brooms in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom and that you need it to sneak around. Oh and I didn't know you had a crush on that idiot!" I said.

"That's brilliant! Are you sure not being a criminal when you grow up?" Rose asked while chuckling.

"Are you mad!" I asked laughing a little.

"Says the one who is planning on stealing something." Rose said.

"Borrowing!" I exclaimed.

"I can't do this! Besides he's not an idiot!" Fionna said quickly.

"Well, then I guess you're right Rose. We are going to steal it after all!" I said persuading Fionna.

"You can't! Fine I'll do it!" Fionna said.

"Besides, how can you be together one day if you can't even talk to him?" I asked.

"Yeah, consider this a practise run. If it goes well, maybe you can befriend him or something." Rose said.

We decided to have Fionna ask James for his cloak the next day at lunch before he went to the Great Hall for food.

Everything went according to plan and Fionna reported that James would give her the cloak before dinner. After classes were done for the day, we finished our homework in the common room and waited until the time was right.

Fionna went ahead of us while Rose and I followed close behind but not too close that people would know we were following her.

While Fionna was waiting in front of the Gryffindor Common room portrait, we were standing behind a pillar acting normal.

Finally James came out of the common room. He gave Fionna the cloak and she thanked him, but something was off. James had one of his trouble-maker smirks on his face. His friends came out of the portrait with strange looking spray cans in their hands. They sprayed poor Fionna and Fionna found herself full of different colours. The Marauders laughed as hard as they could and Fionna had a mix of feelings showing on her face.

I had enough and marched towards James, grabbed the cloak and casted a hex on his glasses that would cause it to grow and shrink to different sizes. After that I ran straight to Professor McGonagall's office so that the boys would think that I was going to report to her.

When they realised where I was going, they turned around and went back to where they came from. I gave them a dirty look and went in the other direction.

When they were gone, I ran to the dormitory where I found Fionna in tears, Rose who was comforting her and Fawn who was flipping through pages in a rush, probably to find a counter curse.

"We have to take her to Madam Pomfrey. She'll know what to do." I said softly and comforting to the girls.

"Yeah. Come on Fionna." Rose said but Fionna wouldn't budge.

"I'm not going out there looking like this! This would never have happened if you didn't plan on making trouble! This is all your fault!" She cried.

"No, this was my idea. Don't blame it on Rose, besides we have the cloak. We'll cover you." I said and threw it over her.

The girls had awed expressions as Fionna's body disappeared while I covered her completely under the cloak.

"Woah, that's amazing!" Rose said.

"Yeah but you're going to have to keep quiet under there, Fionna. People can still hear you and don't walk into anyone or anything. Remember your just invisible not completely transparent or unhearable." I explained.

Fionna sniffed and soon she was completely quiet. We all walked out of the dormitory and the common room, careful not that anyone would notice a gap when we walked through the doorways.

We had to walk closer to the wall so that nobody would accidentally walk straight into Fionna and quickly made our way to the hospital wing.

Before we walked inside, we took off the cloak where nobody could see and quickly went into the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey's eyes widened at the sight. Fionna immediately began to cry again and Madam Pomfrey began working on fixing her colour and emotional state.

She ushered us to leave so that she could work in silence, so we did as we were told. I tried to get a glimpse of the girl to see if she was ready to answer our questions but I had no such luck.

While we walked back to the common room, I hid the invisibility cloak in my robes so that no one, especially not James would see it. I breathed a sigh of relief when we were inside of the common room.

"Alright, we can't go to dinner without the Marauders confronting us, so we'll have to skip dinner." I said to the girls.

"I can't not eat!" Rose exclaimed quickly.

"Well lucky for us, we have Fawn over here who can assist with that problem." I said looking at Fawn.

"Fine, I'll help but next time you're gonna have to starve!" Fawn said while crossing her arms.

"You truly are a genius." Rose said smiling brightly at the idea of food.

After we ate the food that Fawn brought us, we showered. Fawn and Rose played a game of wizarding chess so that Fawn could practice for a tournament in the chess club after that. I began reading some of the books that I brought from the library to do something while we waited for everyone to go to bed.

Just as I began the next chapter, Rose tapped my shoulder indicating that everyone were in their dormitories. I took the invisibility cloak and Rose and I went to the common room. After we went outside, I threw the cloak over us and we made our way to the hospital wing. Every time someone walked past us, we held our breath and moved to the walls so that they wouldn't walk straight into us.

We reached the door of the hospital wing and opened it after confirming that nobody would see the door opening randomly. After closing the door, Rose threw off the cloak. We walked to the girl who was surprisingly awake.

"That was insane!" Rose whispered loudly but not loud enough to be her normal talking voice.

"What are you doing here?" The girl asked.

"We had questions." Rose said.

"Yeah, who are you?" I asked.

"Isabelle West." She said simply.

"Nice to meet you Isabelle." I said holding up my hand for her to shake.

"I'm Rosemarie, Rose for short, and this is Jemma." Rose said also shaking hands with the girl named Isabelle.

"I'm guessing Jem for short?" Isabelle asked.

"I never really thought about it but you can call me whatever you want." I said.

"Do you mind if we call you Issy?" Rose asked.

"Not at all. Nobody ever gave me a nickname before." She said and shrugged.

"Really? Well then I'm proud to be the first, Issy." Rose said.

"Are you going to attend Hogwarts?" I asked.

"I don't really know. After the incident, I got shipped here from America as an owl by muggles. I don't even know if my family is still looking for me. It's been months." She told us with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Well if you do attend, you're welcome to be friends with us. How old are you anyway?" Rose asked.

"Thirteen. I'm supposed to be third year at Ilvermorny but as you can see I'm in the wrong country for that. You're second year from what I could figure out, right." Issy asked.

"Yeah. I have a friend in third year called Dandelion, I'm sure she won't mind being friends with you too." I said.

"I wonder what house you'll be in here. Ravenclaw is the best house then there's Hufflepuff that's not too bad, Gryffindor who most people like and Slytherin that nobody likes." Rose said.

"I find nothing wrong with Slytherin." I said simply.

"That's if I attend Hogwarts." Issy said while giggling.

"Is it true that you're a Maledictus?" I asked.

"A what?" Issy asked.

"Someone cursed to eventually change into an animal." I said.

"No, my brother accidentally transfigured me into an owl after mum told him he couldn't have one yet. Along the way I got caught and shipped here, then Fionna bought me. She never really sent me to send letters just to be a companion, thankfully." Issy explained.

"That must have been hard, loosing everything like that." Rose said with a sad expression.

"Yeah, but Professor McGonagall said that she will contact my parents somehow and send me back home. Because of complications, she said I might go back in the next vacation." She said.

"Well that's kinda forever away, not to change the mood or anything." Rose said.

"Well, look on the bright side, at least you've got us. You could always ask if you can come to classes for catching up. It seems boring hiding away in the hospital wing the whole time." I said.

"That's a great idea." Issy said while Rose gave a huge yawn.

"I guess we have to go back now." I said and said goodbye.

We threw the cloak over us again and made our way back to the common room.

Just when the common room doorway opened, someone tore the cloak off just as we went inside.

"You thought you could steal my cloak, huh? That was a mistake. I'm reporting you to the headmaster!" James said.

"Go ahead then, if you really have the guts." I said.

"I will then. I'm no coward." He said.

"Are you crazy?" Rose asked.

"A little." I whispered.

"You think I'm bluffing? You'll see." James said and walked away while throwing the cloak over him.

We went inside and quickly made our way to the dormitory careful not to wake the others.

"You really think he is bluffing?" Rose asked.

"No." I said.

"What? Did I hear right?" Rose asked.

"I actually want to see the headmaster anyway." I said.

"You have a peculiar way of booking an appointment with the headmaster. You could've just asked." Rose said.

"Yeah but I need to know something and if James reports us for being outside after curfew, he'll know why. That way I'll know if that wink actually meant something." I said.

"You're strange, Jemma. I'm going to bed, I have a feeling that tomorrow is going to be a long day." Rose said and went to sleep.

The next morning at breakfast, Fawn asked us about the night before. We told her the whole story except that I was hoping that James would turn us in.

As promised we were in fact called in by Professor Flitwick that Professor Dumbledore wanted to see us. Quickly we made our way with Professor Flitwick to the headmaster's office, although Professor Flitwick and Rose struggled to keep up with my fast pace. After Professor Flitwick gave the new password, he left and we made our way up the spiral staircase.

The office was circular with portraits of the previous headmasters on the walls sleeping. Funny sounds could be heard around with the different magical items doing different things. The Sorting Hat sat motionless on a shelf where I had seen it last year when I visited Professor Dumbledore's office. A beautiful young phoenix sat near Professor Dumbledore's desk where he was seated. He ushered for us to sit down.

"If I understand correctly, James Potter told me that you have stolen one of his possessions and used it to sneak around the castle after hours. As you know it is unacceptable for students to be outside of their common rooms after curfew and stealing from others is not what I expected from you two. This behaviour cannot go unpunished. Do you have anything to say?" He asked with a suspicious twinkle in his eyes.

"We only did it to make sure that Isabelle was alright. Besides, James and his friends pranked Fionna. She had to go to the hospital wing!" Rose said.

"Professor, why did you wink at us in potions?" I asked.

"Ah, Miss Whitewood. I presume that you already know the answer to that question."

"So you wanted us to do it, didn't you?" I asked.

"I think it would be safer for Miss West to stay at Hogwarts for a while before she returns to America. The reason I called you in today is to inform you that she will be sorted tonight at dinner. As for you sneaking around and stealing things from other students, I will leave you with a warning not to do it again." Professor Dumbledore said with a little smirk.

"Really? We're not getting detention or anything?" Rose asked amazed.

"Not if you actually want to have detention." Professor Dumbledore said.

"No!" Rose and I coroused.

"Then you may go." He said and we left relieved.

"You knew he wouldn't have punished us, didn't you?" Rose asked as we made our way to the Great Hall for dinner.

"Not really, I was hoping not." I answered her.

"What? You really are mad!"

"We would have went to his office anyway."

"Not if you told James to actually tell Professor Dumbledore!" Rose exclaimed.

"Calm down, everything went smoothly." I said.

"I'm not doing anything with you again if you're doing things blindly! You know, Ravenclaws plan before they do anything stupid. Sometimes I wonder if you actually belong in Gryffindor!" Rose said.

"I admit, I did something stupid. Curiosity overcame me again." I said.

"That's why the Sorting Hat put you in Ravenclaw! You're curious about everything!" Rose said.

"Yeah, besides I don't think I would ever be put in Gryffindor. I'm more likely to end up in Hufflepuff if I got sorted again." I said.

"Well, luckily for you, we got out unscathed. I'm forgiving you just this once!" Rose said.

"Nah, I think you enjoyed breaking the rules. You'd do it again, I know it."

"Well next time we have to plan things better before we put things into action. We're not Gryffindors who would walk in headfirst without knowing about the consequences, we're Ravenclaws. We have to keep our reputation up somehow. I have a feeling we should follow the rules for a while before someone finds out we're not the best examples for the school." Rose said.

"I agree. Now food awaits!" I said and we entered the Great Hall.

Everyone got seated and Professor Dumbledore silenced the everyone. The Sorting Hat was placed on a stool indicating that there was a sorting happening. Professor McGonagall stood next to it waiting for the little ceremony to start. Professor Dumbledore stood from his seat.

"Tonight the sorting of Miss Isabelle West from Ilvermorny will take place. She will be at Hogwarts for a little while and will be attending class with the third years. I expect that you will treat her accordingly." Professor Dumbledore said and sat down.

The doors to the Great Hall was opened by Hagrid and Isabelle walked inside to the stool the Sorting Hat was on. Professor McGonagall picked it up so that Isabelle could sit down and placed the hat on her head. It took a couple of minutes before the hat sorted her, screaming, 'Gryffindor'.

The Gryffindor table erupted into cheers as she sat down next to one of the Gryffindor prefects. After we ate, we went to congratulate Isabelle. We walked her to the Gryffindor Common room with the prefect she sat next to at dinner. The prefect whispered the password so that we wouldn't hear but I accidentally heard what he said. It sounded like he said, 'Porcupine-quills'. I made a mental note to remember that in the future if I really had to do something sneaky but dismissed that thought as I remembered that I agreed to follow the rules for a while.


End file.
